Nigatsu no Hoshi Stars of February
by Miko no Suteki
Summary: after 4 long yrs of shard hunting, the final battle arrives. lives will be lost, love will be found, but in the end, fate is the number one enemy. are they strong enough to survive? rated R for strong language
1. Growth

Nigatsu no Hoshi  
  
Disclaimer: all plans to steal inuyasha have failed. But I will keep you updated.  
  
A/N: this is my first fic, but I have many great ideas to keep you entertained. This isn't only based on getting Inuyasha and Kagome together (that wouldn't a good enough challenge) but there's gonna be action and twists for it. PLEASE REVIEW and tell me if you want me to continue! There's a lot of Japanese words and terms in my story, there's a list at the bottom of each page of the meanings though, just in case. Okay, the only things you need to know is that Kikyou is gone, and so is Kaede.  
  
Chapter 1: growth  
  
"Ohh, what a beautiful day!"  
  
It was early afternoon of late February in the sengoku jadai. The sun was shinning through shear clouds, creating a calming sensation as the rays gently penetrated through the branches in small blotches. It was contently warm outside, with an almost unnoticeable chill breeze. The birds were singing and she could hear the sound of the brook that led to the hot spring on the other side of the hill she was stretched out on. As she was dozing off as she daydreamed, she heard someone approach from behind. She could feel its demon youki, it was a weak one, and decided to lay still and surprise it before it surprised her. It was only about 10 yards from her and she tensed a little. 'Wait for it, wait for it' she told herself.  
  
"Kagome oka-san? Are you awake?"  
  
She opened her eyes after a moment and stared up into two beaming green eyes, and a smile of fangs. He was a young fox cub, standing about 4 feet tall now, long red hair, and a short bushy tail. The most adorable thing she had ever seen the whole time shed been here.  
  
"Shi-shippou-chan?" kagome couldn't help but giggle a little. "What's so funny okasan?" the young kitsune asked with a serious look on his face.  
  
"Nothing shippou-chan, I thought you were a youkai coming to attack me for the shikon no kikara."  
  
"You know I would never let a demon come close to you while you were out here" he said with a proud smile as he stuck his chest out a bit to show how strong he was, and she giggled again. "I know shippou, how could I forget?" "The others would like you to come back because Miroku has made us lunch" he smiled at her, apparently very excited at the thought of a hot meal made by Miroku. Kagome got up and the kitsune cub jumped into her arms. She caught him with an "oomph!" shippou had grown a lot and wasn't as light as she remembered him being when she first adopted him. She smiled at him as he cuddled against her, and they started back to the village.  
  
Kagome has been traveling between worlds for about 4 years now, and still fighting hard against Naraku. The group had grown close to each other, and especially Kagome in the span of time, and she loves them all dearly. She watched them all mature and grow, as they did her. She had become a fine woman in the time she traveled with them. She had not only grown physically, but had matured beautifully, and her powers had grown with age. Last year her miko powers were making themselves more manifest and with Kaede to guide her and her battles for fine tuning, she had become a valuable asset to the group, and they hate the thought of her having to leave after the jewel is complete again.   
  
~*~*~  
  
As they came closer to the camp, they caught the scent of herbs and roasting fish. As they came into the clearing, they could see Miroku hovering over the fire and pot from Kagome's time. Sango was sitting against the side of Kaede's hut (which was given to Kagome after her passing 8 months prior) with the small Kirara in her lap purring in her sleep as Sango stoked her back. Miroku turned to see Kagome and Shippou returning. "Oh, Kagome-sama, did you enjoy your walk? I hope you worked up an appetite because Inuyasha was kind enough to catch nearly a dozen large trout for us." Kagome smiled, "yes, Miroku, I was looking forward to lunch actually." "At least Inuyasha is good for something eh?" shippou said jumping over to sit on Miroku's shoulder.  
  
"Feh! You should be grateful you even get food brat" As everyone turned around at the sound of the voice they saw Inuyasha falling from the sky from the direction of the forests' edge. As he landed he smacked Shippou off Miroku's shoulder. "Aahhhh! Kagome make him stoooppp!" screamed shippou as Inuyasha leaned over him. "I'm sorry inuyasha, you know I didn't mean it!" he trembled. Inuyasha just sneered at him, "Feh! Here, eat up, you're not growing fast enough" inuyasha said as he whipped a fish from behind his back and gave it to him, and he stood up and walked back to Miroku.  
  
Nobody was surprised that inuyasha didn't hurt shippou, he too had actually matured a lot over the years and finally learned that Shippou + his fists = OSUWARI!  
  
They all sat quietly eating they're meals, enjoying having a nice meal on such a nice day. When they were done Kagome got up to get everyone's dishes and brought them to the washbasin to let them soak. Before she could get there, she stopped abruptly causing her to drop one of the dishes, catching everyone's attention.  
  
She was just staring into nothing when they looked at her. Inuyasha broke the silence before Kagome could "I see, we have a visitor apparently" Kagome nodded. "Where is it Kagome-Chan?" asked Sango as she slipped her kimono off, exposing her youkai exterminator's uniform. Kagome pointed into the trees to the west. "Well let's go then Kagome" kagome looked over to see inuyasha on one knee waiting for her to climb on. "Hold on, I need to get my bow and quiver" she grabbed them from inside the hut and ran back out jumping in the air onto his back.  
  
In an instant, they were headed through the woods. She was so glad she didn't wear her school uniform anymore since she had graduated. When she rode on inuyasha in it, his clothes would irritate her bare legs. But now she wore an outfit that was more fitting for the times and easier to maneuver in, it was an armless kimono that had slits on both sides going up to her hips, and underneath she wore tight black pants like the ones Sango wears.  
  
"Stop here inuyasha!" inuyasha halted in a tree branch immediately. "Its coming towards us and its best if we stay here so we can get a clean shot of him when he comes into the clearing down there." She pointed to a clearing that they could see from their vantage point. Just them they saw a large badger youkai standing about 20 feet high. It stopped in the clearing to smell where its prey had moved too. Kagome pulled her arrow and drew it to the bow in the blink of an eye it inflamed in purple light and headed straight at the youkai, striking it in the throat and the sparkle of a jewel shard could be seen flying from its deteriorating body.  
  
Inuyasha jumped down into the clearing, "keh! A half wit of course" kagome bent down and picked up the shard. "Wait, there's another shard coming, but I can sense more than one demon!"  
  
"Yeah, I smell them, id say about a dozen of flying bastards..."  
  
Sango, Miroku, and Kirara were hovering overhead when Kirara picked up the scent too. They rose a little over the tree level and could see the flock of youkai coming in they're direction. One in particular looked strong, presumably the lead of the flock.  
  
They landed in the clearing next to Inuyasha and Kagome on the ground. "They're coming here to meet us, lets wait for them." Stated Miroku.  
  
Sango readied her hiraikotsu over her shoulder, as Inuyasha held a waiting hand over the hilt of his tetsusaiga. Kagome stood beside inuyasha arrow pointed to the sky. As they saw the wing of one of the birds come over the clearing Sango let her boomerang go. It flew through the sky and took the wing clear off. They heard it fall to the ground with a screech. Then three more came into the clearing, inuyasha leapt from the ground and took one of the birds' head off, spinning around from the momentum of his swing to face the other one closest to him. He did an upper cut through its chest as it swooped at him. The third one came for Miroku who slashed at it with his staff, not bothering to use kazaana until necessary.  
  
Then another fleet came at them, this time from behind. Inuyasha rebounded off the tree he had landed on and jumped at them. "Sango! Behind you!" Sango looked back to see a youkai about 10 feet infront of her with its claws reaching for her. She blocked it with her boomerang, holding it back as it pushed against it with its legs. With her free hand she drew her Kantana and slashed at its throat, watching it fall limp against her weapon. "Thanks inuyasha!"  
  
Inuyasha was busy with more of the youkai in the air. Kagome was watching for the shard holder, she could sense that it was waiting for the others to attack and weaken the group...she hated it when they did that.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Once the last of the smaller youkai were easily defeated by the group, they waited for the finale. "What's it waiting for Kagome?" "I don't know Inuyasha, be patient, I can feel its power growing. I think it's angry we killed its waves of attack. It was hoping for an easy kill."  
  
"Keh, baka..."  
  
Kagome's eyes widened, "where'd it go? I can't feel it anymore..."  
  
"Aaarrhhgg!!!!"  
  
"Miroku!!" everyone spun around to see Miroku kneeling on the ground holding his bleeding shoulder.  
  
"shoot! The monster can teleport?"  
  
"kekeke, wrong little wench. I can hide my aura and body from you, including the light from the shikon fragment."  
  
"where is he?! Can you smell him inuyasha??" "no, I cant, he's hiding that too. Kuso."  
  
The group stood back-to-back keeping a watchful eye out for the demon. Sango was the first to catch a glimpse of strange movement in the foliage of the forest. "HIRAIKOTSU!" the large boomerang flew through the forest towards the beast destroying everything in its wake. The youkai avoided it and jumped out of the tree in a blur. The boomerang rose out of the trees and flew through the sky back into the waiting hand of its owner. "missed, dammit. Kirara, get Houshi-sama out of here, we'll meet you back in the village when we're done!" Kirara immediately obliged to the command, coaxing the injured monk onto her back gently then quickly taking off over the tree line., and out of sight of the battlefield.  
  
Inuyasha looked around fervently, he couldn't stand that he couldn't sense where the enemy was. "you weaklings think you can actually defeat me? A human, a miko, and a lowly hanyou?" inuyasha growled at the way the youkai referred to him, he always hated it when people used the term 'hanyou' as if he were handicap . Although, the more the beast spoke, the closer inuyasha was to finding him. 'baka doesn't realize that this "lowly hanyou" has super sensitive hearing' he thought to himself.  
  
The monster laughed again, when he saw the hanyou flinch when he referred to him. "Gotcha you bastard" inuyasha said under his breath as he lunged towards the trees on the opposite side of the clearing, slicing through the branches with claws "SANKON TETSUSOU!!!" He felt his hand slice something softer than the wood, "keh! Not so high and mighty now, are you?" he could smell the blood from the wound he had inflicted, but he knew he alone at the site of contact. "kekeke, thank you hanyou, you fell right into my trap" inuyasha spun around at the sound of the voice. To his horror he saw the huge creature, with the wings and limbs of a bird, but the torso of a man, looming over kagome from behind. Apparently the injury through off his concentration of the spell that kept him hidden.  
  
"KAGOME!! ABUNAI*!!"  
  
"what?" she turned around and gasped as she came face to face with the beast, taking a step back she tripped over a root and dropped her bow and fell to the ground. He took a step forward. "you have jewel shards, I shall devour you, and I will acquire those the shards you possess.  
  
Although it seems a waste to destroy someone with powers such as yours."  
  
"you don't know the half of it you filthy bastard" she said low and in monotone. She raised her palm to the beast, which eyed her curiously and stepping back a little. As he did, he watched as the women's eyes turned a light purple, and a flash of light emitted around her body and then through her hand, blowing the beasts body apart from the waist down.  
  
"you wench, you will pay for that!" he took to flight, circling back around towards her. She stood defiantly, and Sango moved infront of her friend protectively.  
  
"KAZI NO KUZE!!!!" inuyasha flew from the forest floor and sliced tetsusaiga into the air. The bird looked on confused..."swinging at dead air now are we, stupid hanyo-...?!" he was stopped short when he saw waves of bright light coming towards him, he didn't even have enough time to dodge it before it engulfed him and he disappeared, ripped apart from the shear power of the blast.  
  
"keh, baka. Dead air your ass."  
  
"inuyasha?" "nani?" "arigato, inuyasha" she smiled as he landed infront of her. "you know kagome, you really had me scared there, I keep forgetting how strong you've become..."  
  
"Don't worry, I still need you to protect me, I'm not as strong as you."  
  
"good wench, I wouldn't allow that anyways." He tried to hide it, but Kagome caught the small pull at the corners of his lips as he tried to keep a straight face.  
  
Kagome walked over to a spot in the trees and picked up the jewel shard left behind from the youkai.  
  
Kirara came over the trees, sensing that the battle was over. She landed next to Sango, and let her get on. Inuyasha bent down infront of Kagome and waited for her to embrace him from behind. She did, and he smiled to himself, even after 4 years he never got tired of feeling her warm body flushed against his, although he'd never tell a soul...  
  
JAPANESE:  
  
Nigatsu no Hoshi: Stars of February  
  
Youki: negative aura belonging to youkai  
  
Okasan: term for mother  
  
Shikon no kikara: shards of the jewel of four souls  
  
Osuwari: sit  
  
Youkai: monster/demon  
  
Hiraikotsu: Sango's boomerang  
  
Kazaana: air rip  
  
Kantana: sword  
  
Baka: fool, stupid  
  
Hanyou: half demon/half human  
  
Sankon tutsusou: soul shattering iron claw  
  
Abunai: danger! Look out!  
  
Nani: what?  
  
Arigato: thank you 


	2. Unnerving Question, Feared Answers

Disclaimer: inuyasha still isn't mine...yet A/N – please tell me what you think, all criticism is welcome. Hope you like this chapter. Tell me if you want me to make the story move faster, slower, or what.  
  
Chapter 2: with unnerving questions, comes feared answers  
  
Back in the village, Sango had dressed Miroku's wounds, they weren't lethal, but he wouldn't be able to use his left hand for a while. Shippou was playing with Kirara, he was overjoyed to see his adoptive mother come back from the battle, he had feared the worse after seeing what happened to Miroku when he came back unconscious, alone with Kirara. Kagome was making dinner while inuyasha silently sat next to her watching. Sango came out from the hut and sat across from the fire, causing inuyasha to silently sigh, he treasured the time he was able to spend alone with Kagome, even if it was simply watching her make food. Something had caught his eye as of late . She had become even more confident with in the past year, always holding the group together when things got bad. She was always there for him, never leaving his side when things got too dangerous or he would become unbearable to be around, or hurt her. He didn't know if the change in her was because of the awakening of her power or because they were so close to gathering all the jewel shards. He couldn't lie to himself, she was also drop-dead gorgeous, although even he knew she didn't know it. However, she was so mature, and he couldn't even fight with her as they used too, shed walk away or reason before she got mad. Although, he did do a few things that pissed her off. Mainly was when he beat up on shippou, or when he came to her time unannounced and dragging her back with him. But now, even shippou had matured into an almost tolerable young kitsune, and kagome would stay in his time for months at a time now, since she wasn't in highschool and she is waiting to finish they're hunt before starting college. 'What's going to happen when the battles over with Naraku and the jewels complete?' Then realization kicked in 'How much longer do I have with her before she has to leave me? She's not going to stay here, there'd be no reason.' His eyes went wide as he stared at the ground in an attempt to keep the look in his eyes hidden behind his bangs.  
  
As if reading his mind Sango spoke, "kagome-Chan, we are getting close to finding the rest of the shards, aren't we?" Kagome paused and then smiled at Sango, "I was going to wait until after dinner to discuss this with you guys...but I'm pretty sure that we may have all the remaining shards that Naraku hasn't been able to get...all but kouga-kun's I'm pretty sure..." her smile wavered at the thought of Kouga somehow having to lose his shards, it wouldn't be likely that he'd give them up.  
  
Sango's face seemed to glow as she leaned forward in disbelief. "are you sure Kagome-Chan?" "pretty positive Sango-Chan..."  
  
"well aren't you excited? Our long and painful search is about to end! There's just Naraku to get rid of, and then its o, ove-r" she trailed off a little as the word left her mouth, "over" she said again. "yes I know Sango- Chan, it will all be over, the legend of the Shikon no Tama will be completed" ...'and the legend of Lady Kagome, the miko who found her unfinished destiny in a strange world, and traveled with the hanyou Inuyasha and friends, will be...history...' she sadly added, as the smile was completely wiped from her face. They didn't even remember inuyasha was there until he slowly got up, face emotionless but still pointed at the ground. Then he turned and walked into the forest that held his name, slowly fading into the darkness.  
  
Miroku came out of the hut and walked to where Sango and Kagome were watching something in the forest. "is it another youkai?" Sango answered since kagome was still confused as to why he had left so strangely. "no, just a poor confused hanyou Houshi-sama." Miroku nodded in understanding then lowered himself to the ground using his staff for support. He sat next to Sango. Sango was staring into the fire and Kagome was still staring blankly into the woods, so he sighed to himself and decided he couldn't take the tension any longer. All Kagome heard was "WHACK!" "Hentai, I shouldn't have treated your wounds, I should have immobilized the other arm too instead."  
  
Kagome closed her eyes, tilted her head to the ground and smiled...'some things will never change...I'm glad. I wish more things were that way' and with that thought, kagome stood in the same fashion as inuyasha had, and walked away silently.  
  
Inuyasha stiffened when he heard Sango stumble on her words when she tried to say "over". Moreover, when he heard Kagome say that the "legend" would be complete, did that mean that she would no longer be needed here? Since she would have completed what Kikyou was unable to do, when Naraku threw fate off course...would she be permanently sealed on the other side? He couldn't take it anymore, he had to get away from these unnerving questions he was bombarding himself with, so he stood and left, not noticing the concerned stare of Kagome as he walked away.  
  
Kagome walked along the forest floor, she knew where he would go, of course. She walked calmly, still thinking of what she and Sango had just talked about. When she came into the clearing she was looking for, she peered upward, there was the Goshenboku standing infront of her, its branches swaying slightly in the night breeze. As her eyes continued to wonder up the mighty God Tree, she met two golden orbs staring down at her. She smiled kindly at them, "inuyasha". He stared back at her, 'why'd she follow me?' he thought. He stopped thinking as he continued his gaze on the young woman. The moonlight seemed to follow her, and the way it lit her already milky soft skin, she seemed to glow in it. Her hip-length raven hair lifted in the breeze and outlined her figure. He shook his head to stop his gawking.  
  
Kagome didn't notice him looking at her as she walked quietly and sat down on the roots of the tree. She knew she didn't have to say anything. Sure enough a moment later he was sitting next to her. He looked at her as she stared at something overhead, he followed her gaze up to the stars. Each lost in their own thoughts, they sat in silence.  
  
"I love the night sky during this time of the year. The February stars always seem to glisten a little more than usual, don't you think?"  
  
"Feh, I wouldn't notice things like that, only you Kagome. But I will agree that they are amazing, no matter how many times I've seen them, they're soothing."  
  
"yes, they certainly are."  
  
Kagome liked inuyasha when he would confide in her with small things like this. He certainly had matured a lot, she had noticed. Although she thought it was adorable when he would throw in his signature 'feh' or 'keh', trying to pretend as if he was tough and could care less about anything. She knew otherwise, he had turned into a very caring person, although he hated to show it, he had developed a closer friendship with all of them, valuing them and letting them know they were needed.  
  
"inuyasha...is there something bothering you? You didn't seem yourself back at camp." Inuyasha didn't answer right away, wondering whether he should tell her. ' come on you jerk! If you really might lose her, you have to tell her how you feel while you still can! Why cant you just look her in the eye and tell her you don't want her to leave?...because...what if she turns me down...what life would I be asking her to leave to stay here with me? What life could I give her here? No, I cant do that to her'  
  
"inuyasha?" "wha?!" , he was abruptly dragged from his thoughts. "you never answered me, is there something wrong?"  
  
"No...nothings wrong, I was just thinking about some things. About what's going to happen with Naraku. Do you think we'll be able to defeat him? What's going to happen to the jewel" '...and you...' he added to himself.  
  
kagome rose her eyes back to the stars..." I would never expect you to have any doubts about whether or not you'll be able to defeat an enemy. We'll be able to do it inuyasha, I have faith in you, in all of us. And the jewel will stay with me until we can decide what to use it for. After that...I don't know." She looked over at him as he stared at the ground, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder. He looked up at her and she almost jumped from the look in his eyes, they held so much...she didn't know, confusion, worry, and hopelessness. 'does he think we'll lose? What's worrying him so much? He's always been so confident about this, a little over confident most of the time'. A breeze blew over them, causing kagome to shiver slightly. Inuyasha pulled her closer to him and put his arm around her shoulder. He was happy when she relaxed into his touch and settled her head against his chest.  
  
"I know kagome, things will turn out the way they're supposed to. Naraku will die for his treachery, and then we'll all...just continue on." He didn't want to say 'move on', since he knew that would be a little too close to the truth. Kagome noticed the weariness in his voice as he finished his sentence. "I know inuyasha, I'm worried about what will happen to all of us after its over too..." his eyes went wide when she said that and his hold on her tightened, and she gripped the cloth of his coat in return. He smiled to himself, 'she feels the same way as I do...who knows, maybe things will work out after all.' He lowered his chin to the top of her head and closed his eyes, they stayed like that until she fell asleep in his embrace. He didn't want to go back, he wanted to stay like this forever. So, he gathered her up and jumped onto his branch in the tree, got comfortable and closed his eyes, only allowing himself to fall half asleep so anything dangerous would wake him through his senses. 'oyasumu nasai, Kagome' he told her silently...  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
kagome awoke to someone shaking her. "kagome? Kagome, I'm hungry" she opened her eyes to see a pleading shippou hovering over her. "shippou? I'm back in the hut?"  
  
"Aa, and I'm hungry. Can you make me breakfast? Sango went to bathe and Miroku's still laying down, he thinks a scratch like that's a good excuse to sleep in."  
  
"alright shippou-Chan, I'll make us food."  
  
She walked outside holding Shippou's hand as they walked to the fire pit with her backpack over her shoulder. She waited as Shippou leaned over and started a small flame in the pit with his foxfire. She sat a pan on the low flame and took some eggs out of her backpack.  
  
By the time Sango got back and Miroku finally got himself out of bed, Kagome had prepared enough food for all of them. She made fried eggs, rice cakes, and had a bottle of orange juice from her time. She also had brought along pickles and other small entrees. "ohh! You made us breakfast? It looks delicious kagome-sama." "Yes kagome-Chan, domo arigato gozaimasu" "Do itashimashite you guys, dig in!" before she could even finish her sentence they were all shoveling mouthfuls of food. She smiled at shippou, who looked like he had been deprived from food for weeks, and appeared to be in heaven. She loved it when she was able to make everyone happy. 'wait, "everyone"...where's inuyasha anyways?' just as the thought made it through her head she heard him running through the trees behind her. She should have known, the smell of food could bring him racing back from miles away.  
  
He landed next to her. "ohayo gozaimasu, inuyasha," she said as she quickly made a plate for him, and then turned and handed it to a very grateful looking hanyou, like a puppy awaiting scraps, she giggled to herself at the thought of inuyasha on his knees, paws infront of him, and tongue hanging out of his mouth looking up with begging eyes.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
after breakfast was over, and everything was cleaned, the group sat in a small circle together. "so what do we do now? Do we wait Naraku to come for us, or do we start to search for him ourselves?"  
  
"I don't know Sango-Chan, it may be impossible to find him, we haven't seen him in a while and we have no leads as to where he is now."  
  
"ahh, but you are mistaken young Lady Kagome."  
  
Everyone turned around to look towards Inuyasha. "Myouga-jiji? Is that you?" as they asked Inuyasha raised a hand and smacked himself on the side of the face, and they watched as the small creature fell to the ground. Once regaining his posture, he jumped onto Kagome's shoulder. "yes, I have news for all of you."  
  
"do you know where Naraku is Myouga?"  
  
"not exactly Miroku-sama. However, there have been some strange activities in the west. Seems there's been a strange sudden increase in youkai activities."  
  
"keh! That's my brothers problem, what does it have to do with us?"  
  
"well you see, Lord Inuyasha, it may be because Naraku knows that you have found the last of the shards, so is preparing himself to battle you and complete the jewel for himself."  
  
"wait, how does anyone know that we have the last shards? It just happened yesterday?"  
  
"Kagome may dear, you have no idea, demons are even worse gossipers than humans. How do you think I can effortlessly get vital information incessantly?"  
  
"oh...so what are we supposed to do?"  
  
"its obvious, we need to go and face Naraku before he can finish 'preparing' himself. We need to attack now."  
  
"yes my Lord. And my guess is that Sesshoumaru-sama isn't all to pleased with the intrusion to his land, so no doubt he can assist you."  
  
"keh! Since when do I need my brothers' help for anything. Since he stopped chasing after tetsusaiga, we haven't even seen him in over a year, who cares about him."  
  
"okay, if we're going to fight, this is our chance."  
  
"right Sango-Chan, but I need to go back to my time and tell my family what I'm doing, just in case something happens." She looked over to inuyasha, and he nodded, turning around to face the woods. "I'll be back in a few hours or so." She walked towards inuyasha and got on his back, "ja mata!"  
  
the group watched as Inuyasha and Kagome rocketed towards the well. "what did she mean, 'in case something happens' Houshi-sama? You don't think..."  
  
"she is going back to say a farewell, incase she cannot return to them."  
  
As they approached the well Inuyasha jumped down to the ground and ran the rest of the way, stopping just within feet of the wells edge.  
  
"I'll wait here for you Kagome." Inuyasha said as she slid off his back. "alright inuyasha, I wont be long." And with that she jumped into the well, falling into its black depths. She waited as she felt the familiar surge of power rush over her, and was taken over with the sensation that she was falling through water. She never really liked it all that much, she almost felt like she was drowning, but by now she just didn't think about it. The luminosity that surrounded her slowly vanished as she felt her feet touch down on the solid earth. She looked up to see the wooden well house that accommodated the bone-eaters well. She climbed out of the well, and walked up the small set of steps leading up to the platform infront of the sliding doors. she slowly walked through the doors, closing them behind her.  
  
Kagome made her way to the back door of the house, sliding it open and closed behind her. She didn't see anyone, so she called out, "Tadaima! Mama, Souta, Chan-Chan?!"  
  
"Kagome darling?!"  
  
"nee-Chan's home?"  
  
"Kagome! "  
  
then all three of them came running around the corner, apparently they were in the middle of breakfast still.  
  
"hi everyone. I'm back!"  
  
"kagome, we haven't seen you in two months! I wish your cell phone got reception over there so we could talk to you while your gone."  
  
"sorry grandpa, I'm pretty sure there wasn't any satellites or Nextel for that matter, 500 years ago."  
  
"so honey, what brings you back this time? Are you close to finishing your search for the jewel shards? I know it sounds selfish, but I wish you'd finish it and come back home to us, we miss you all the time."  
  
"mama frets about you the whole time your gone nee-Chan. And I have no one to bug anymore." Kagome looked at the three faces infront of her. Her mother looked like she was about to cry, Souta was pouting, and grandpa also wore a look of concern on his wrinkled face.  
  
"I'm sorry everyone. I really am, you know I was only staying for so long so I could help to complete this more rapidly, so I could see you all. But, yes, we have found all the rest of the shards of the shikon no tama, and we have a lead on where Naraku is now...that's why I'm here, I came to tell you that I am leaving to battle Naraku, so I wont be back for a while longer."  
  
They all got a stunned look on their faces. They couldn't believe it, the quest was actually coming to an end, it had become a part of their lives, and Kagome would always leave with inuyasha and come back with stories of their adventures. And now, it was had come to the concluding fight already?  
  
Kagome's mother approached her first, embracing her in a mothers hold, "I know you can do it Kagome. We understand, you need to do this, we can wait a little longer for you to come home again." When her mom let her go, she looked up and smiled at her. Her face was no longer worried, but held a look of encouragement, that made Kagome smile back happily.  
  
"arigato mama."  
  
"go get 'em! Tell inuyasha to give him one good punch in the face for us!"  
  
kagome laughed, "alright Souta, don't worry, I will."  
  
She walked over and hugged her younger brother lovingly, "you be good for mama little brother. And take care of yourself."  
  
"alright Kagome, don't worry, I will."  
  
Them she walked over to her grandfather who stood a little hunched with hands behind his back, the same stance Kaede favored. She gave him a tender hug as well, and a kiss on the cheek. "take good care of the shrine Chan- Chan,"  
  
"I will Kagome, you don't have to worry about that." He patted his granddaughter on the back.  
  
She walked back over to her mother giving her one last kiss on the cheek. "and you take good care of these two troublemakers mama." She said indicating her brother and grandpa. Her mom just smiled in reply.  
  
"I love you all, and wish me luck!" And with that Kagome walked back to the door, turning once she got there to look at her family once more and smiled again. And then she silently walked outside.  
  
"Ki o tsukete!!" yelled Souta to Kagome although out of sight.  
  
"What's wrong mama?" Souta asked when he noticed a silent tear fall from her chin. "Ka-kagome acts as if she wont be coming home this time..."  
  
Both of them looked at her with a terrified look on their faces. 'Nee Chan, no, kagome has to come back. She can do it, I know she can.' Then the family stood in silence watching the door Kagome had left through, silently hoping she would walk back in again...  
  
Kagome got back towards the well house, stopping as she saw Buyo waddled up to her. She walked up to the overweight feline and scratched in between the ears, and after purring it waddled off again. She looked up to the Goshenboku as she walked along. She walked inside the well house and down to the well. 'This is it. This is the time, I am going through and we're going to end this. All the pain and suffering we've had to endure for all these years, will end this time.' And with that she jumped into the well that has led her into fates hands before, and this time again...  
  
JAPANESE:  
  
Hentai: pervert  
  
Goshenboku: the God Tree  
  
Oyasumu nasai: good night  
  
Domo arigato gozaimasu: thank you very much  
  
Do itashimashite: your welcome  
  
Ohayo gozaimasu: good morning  
  
Ja mata: later! (As in goodbye (literally means: well then...)  
  
Tadaima: I'm home  
  
Ki o tsukete: take care! /be careful! 


	3. Disfavored Alliances Part 1

Disclaimer: he WILL be mine...  
  
Suteki: hey, your authoress here, going on the third chapter, I'll be trying to make this one longer for yalls. I understand that it's moving pretty slow, so ill try to squeeze more stuff into this one. I'm desperate to know what people think about it. So please, if you could only find it in your hearts to post a review...don't make me sick inuyasha on you! box in the corner rattles with growls coming from it. Haha, down boy! Okay then, read and enjoy!  
  
Chapter 3: Disfavored Alliances part 1  
  
Inuyasha waited patiently for kagome to come back. He had perched himself on the limbs of one of the trees that shaded over the well. He focused on the sky, the birds and other harmless creatures, just taking it all in...anything to avoid thinking too much about the upcoming battle.  
  
True, he had faced Naraku before, and foiled many of his schemes. But he just was not getting a good feeling about this one in particular. No more than 10 minutes had passed when he felt the memorable tingle up his spine as the magic of the well was activated.  
  
'She's back already? That was fast...'  
  
He looked down and saw her form materialize at the bottom of the well, and he fluidly jumped down inside next to her. She was still staring at the ground, not bothering to look up when she felt him near her.  
  
"Kagome? Did everything go alright?" she looked up almost startled, as if she didn't know he was there, "nani? Oh, yes, everything went great, they wish us luck. Oh yeah, and Souta wants you to sock Naraku one just for him" she smiled when she was finished, and inuyasha laughed a little when he thought of how Souta still thought of him as his 'hero'.  
  
"Well, shall we Miss?" he said as he bowed slightly. She laughed at how silly he looked pretending to be a gentleman, and she grabbed onto his shoulders as he bounded them out of the well, and onto the ground outside.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Back in the hut, the group sat contemplating what to do next. Inuyasha sat cross-legged against the north wall, sword propped against his shoulder, as kagome sat on the east wall that faced the doorway with her knees pulled close to her. Miroku and Sango both sat on the west wall across from kagome watching both her and inuyasha waiting for one to say something. At the moment, they were both just staring into the flames in the fire pit located in the middle of the room. Myouga hopped into the hut from under the straw doorway, and jumped onto Inuyasha's knee.  
  
"My Lord, what action do you suppose we take?"  
  
"Well there's not much we can plan out, I say we just head towards the western lands and hope that the bastards actually there." He replied in a low and slow voice.  
  
"Inuyasha's right, there isn't really much we can prepare for, if we don't know what to expect in the first place."  
  
"I agree with Sango-sama and inuyasha, lets just go, hopefully we may gather more information on the way there. What do you think kagome-sama?"  
  
Kagome nodded her head 'yes'. She too couldn't think of a better plan than to just 'wing it!' "Okay, its settled then...we leave at dawn."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
In the morning, they packed up what little they had and might need. Some food supplies, sleeping bags (kagome bought Sango and Miroku one), and their weapons. They told the villagers they were leaving for a while, so to protect the village well. And then they were off.  
  
Kagome watched as the scenery flashed by her as she rode on Inuyasha's back. She loved the way Feudal Japan looked so, virgin compared to modern Tokyo. The land was untouched by cement, and all she could see for miles were trees, mountains, lakes and streams, and that was it. "Shouldn't we take a break inuyasha? We've already reached the boundary of the western lands. You've been running like this for nearly two hours, you need to conserve your strength. And I'm sure Kirara could use a break too. I'll make you guys some lunch too"  
  
"Oi Sango!" inuyasha yelled to his friend who was flying above them on Kirara.  
  
"Aa Inuyasha!?"  
  
"you guys want to take a quick break, kagome thinks we should stop to eat."  
  
"yeah, sounds good." With that she patted Kirara on the head and she started heading for the ground. Kagome saw Sango do this, so she patted inuyasha on the head and said "down boy", inuyasha growled at her in reply, but even he has a sense of humor, "yes master." Kagome giggled, this was fun.  
  
The group settled down next to a small stream and ate the ramen kagome made for all of them. They all had finished, and were getting ready to depart again when Inuyasha's ears perked up, gaining the attention of Kagome and shippou who was on her shoulder.  
  
"inuyasha?"  
  
"shit! Not this soon. Why'd he have to find us so damn soon?"  
  
"Oh no, its not Naraku is it?"  
  
Before anyone could answer Miroku's question he saw kagome and inuyasha look up at something in the sky behind him, so he turned around and gasped in shock.  
  
"Well hello...Little Brother...long time no see. Its so nice of you to visit." Said the cold and solid voice.  
  
Inuyasha growled. "Sesshoumaru..."  
  
"Inuyasha, be nice to Sesshoumaru-sama. I thought you guys gave up on fighting some time ago."  
  
"We have, but my brother is too stubborn to let the past stay in the past. I understand you do not like me inuyasha. But, I understand that you are here for Naraku..."  
  
Everyone's eyes went wide, 'so the rumors WERE true'.  
  
"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama. Do you know where he is?"  
  
"Of course kagome, these are my lands, I know of everything that transpires here." He said almost annoyed.  
  
"Then why haven't you destroyed him yet?"  
  
"Because, I understand that this is your battle, not mine. I have left him to you...but, I too wish to destroy that damned hanyou. How dare he think he could come into my territory and believe he would be safe..."  
  
"Sesshoumaru, just tell us where that bastard is, that's all we need from you."  
  
"You never did have very good manners inuyasha, seems some things of you haven't changed. I can lead you to the boundaries of his domain."  
  
"Why are you helping us, if I may be so bold, Lord Sesshoumaru."  
  
"Monk, it is simple. For one, I hate Naraku almost as much as you do, he's taunted me one too many times, and I have developed a measure of respect for all of your braveness. To think a, group of lowly humans, and my hanyou brother could get that far. You have also assisted me in saving Rin numerous times," he glanced towards Kagome personally for that one, "you deserve this small reward."  
  
Without saying another word, he turned around and his cloud of mist appeared underneath him as he took off into the sky. If the group didn't know him as they did, they'd say he almost looked beautiful...actually he did look beautiful.  
  
When the group saw him leave they took it that they should follow, so they quickly finished packing they're things. Sango, Miroku, and shippou got onto Kirara; kagome walked over to inuyasha who had his arms crossed over his chest and was mumbling something about his brother being an obnoxious pompous ass. "Inuyasha, leave it. He's taking us to Naraku, we have to follow him, or we'll never get to Naraku in time."  
  
Inuyasha glance at her from under his bangs, sighed, and got down on his knees so she could get on. "Thank you inuyasha, that's very mature of you."  
  
"Feh! Don't expect it to become a regular habit, it's just, the sooner Naraku's dead the better."  
  
Inuyasha jumped on top of the trees and quickly caught up with Kirara and could see Sesshoumaru up ahead.  
  
They followed him for a very long time and Inuyasha's legs were screaming at him to stop, he could feel the plummeting of his powers, and his senses where weakening also. The sun was already going down, he couldn't go on anymore.  
  
"Hey bastard!" inuyasha yelled, but Sesshoumaru pretended not to hear him, and kept focused on the horizon.  
  
"Don't ignore me jackass!..." but he still refused to acknowledge him.  
  
"Don't make me use your pet name" inuyasha said just low enough that the only ones that could hear him, were Sesshoumaru and maybe Kagome, and a malicious grin slowly crept over his features.  
  
Sesshoumaru's back went rigid, but before he could say anything in protest, inuyasha yelled out at him as loud as he could, "FLUFFY! Wait up!" he tried to make himself sound like a whining child. Everyone tried not to laugh, all succeeded but shippou who nearly fell off Kirara but luckily, Miroku grabbed a hold of him. 'Fluffy??!!!'  
  
Sesshoumaru's ,more often than not, emotionless mask broke for a second as he abruptly looked over his shoulder, to face the hanyou's smirking face. "don't you ever call me that again! You're lucky I don't kill you now!......what the hell do you want?" by the time he was done speaking, his face was vacant of emotions again, but kagome could tell from his eyes that his mind was somewhere else. Unfortunately, the hint of reminiscing was spent as quickly as it came. ' I can't believe inuyasha actually remembers that...'  
  
flashback  
  
there was a young boy walking along a watercourse, he looked to be about 8 years old. He had on clothes that signified him to be of an honored class, and silver/blue hair that went down to his waist. He heard a voice behind him and he turned to see a little boy running at him crying. The boy looked about 4 or 5 years old, his clothes made him look almost like a peasant, no class at all. But the boy looked a lot like the elder one, he too had long silver hair and golden eyes to match the other's, but he had...dog-ears on the top of his head.  
  
"inuyasha?" The older boy said.  
  
"sess, sesshou...Why'd you leave me, I was lost and I was scared!"  
  
the small inuyasha ran and clasped onto the side of his brother.  
  
"its okay inuyasha, I didn't mean to leave you behind." He was still crying into his shirt, so Sesshoumaru sat him down and wrapped him in his tail to comfort him, "umm, Fluffy..." and he quickly fell asleep, tired from crying and happy to have found his beloved brother. So, he carried him back home, still wrapped in his tail.  
  
end flashback  
  
'that's right, he couldn't pronounce my name back then, so he called me that because he loved the feel of my tail'. As he thought this, he involuntarily stroked his tail once. But he quickly shook those thoughts from his head, ' my brothers despicable, how dare he call me such an insolent name..."  
  
"Fluffy, we need to take a break. You forget that you're with a group of humans, and although I'm half demon, I can't fly like you. So can you just tell us how to get there from here and we'll camp for the night?"  
  
"pathetic brother. Alright then, I'll let you and your friends rest."  
  
They stopped on the ground and inuyasha dropped to the ground with a 'huff'. Sango, Miroku and kagome were all stretching their unfortunate muscles, which were aching from staying in one position for so long. Sesshoumaru eyed them for a moment. Once they were all focused on him again, he told them how to get to the whereabouts of their prey and took off into the sky.  
  
"why'd you want to stop so badly inuyasha?" shippou asked curiously  
  
"I'll give you one guess, do you know what night it is tonight?"  
  
"Ohh, it's the new moon isn't it?" inuyasha nodded to Shippou.  
  
"Bingo, we have a winner" he said under his breath and a tad bit aggravated. He wasn't mad at shippou, but he didn't think it at all convenient that TONIGHT, of ALL nights had to be the one he had to turn human. He was also a tad bit uncomfortable, being so close to Naraku and all.  
  
Inuyasha walked off into the forest, planning to change out of sight, he always was a little humiliated when he changed. No one really understood why though, he was fine most of the time he was human, but it was like the transformation was something that made him unclean, and he shouldn't be around other people so that they wouldn't catch it as well.  
  
Kagome hated watching inuyasha wonder off like this every new moon. He almost looked like a sick animal leaving to find a secluded place to die. So she got up and followed him, she didn't like the thought of him being alone in such a dangerous place. She knew she wouldn't need them, so she left her bow and arrows behind.  
  
"Must be Inuyasha's 'time-of-the-month'...Poor inuyasha...why does he always have to look so depressed before he changes? It brings me down to see him like this so often."  
  
"I know Sango. I don't like it either. But, we are lucky enough to have Kagome-sama with us to cheer him up after he transforms."  
  
"That we do. He's fortunate to have such a close friend as kagome-Chan. We all are. I don't know what we'd do without her..."  
  
"Best not to fret over such questions my dear Sango, the fact is that we're all here together, and we are also about to fulfill our quest. So we might as well make good use of this, since it might very well be the last night we will be spending under the stars as a team..."  
  
"Why do you say such depressing things Houshi....sama, why are you looking at me like that?..." she looked at Miroku who had an insatiable smile on his face as he looked over Sango, one hand starting towards her backside,. "No! even if it's our last night as you said, NO! get back you Hentai!"  
  
Miroku had a strange glimmer of hope in his eyes, thinking that his sappy expression would be enough to get her to show some affection towards him. But he got the wrong kind of emotion in return he realized, as he was soon lying on the ground, face throbbing.  
  
"Oy, and you have the nerve to call yourself a monk...how could someone like you be allowed to have spiritual powers at all"  
  
while inuyasha walked through the trees, he could feel his senses dim increasingly. But he could still sense a presence behind him so he slowly turned around, partially knowing what to expect. Yep, he was right, Kagome followed him. So many times, he had told her to just stay behind, that he'd be fine. But he couldn't blame her for being worried.  
  
"Kagome, you know I like to do this alone, why can't you just except that?"  
  
"inuyasha...I just don't want Naraku to find you, he's probably got his minions all over this place. And his poisonous insects spying out the area waiting for us to show up. Besides, you've never let me see you transform before, why?"  
  
"because I don't like the thought that it happens in the first place, I don't want to make a big deal out of it. Kami, I hate being hanyou..."  
  
kagome frowned, she hated it when inuyasha put himself down for having human blood in him. 'He couldn't still be thinking about a way to become all demon is he? This boy needs a serious self-esteem boost, that's for sure,' she thought.  
  
"come on inuyasha, let's settle down..." (she was always careful to avoid saying the "s" word on accident) she walked over to him and hooked her arm through his and walked him over to the riverbank and sat down. They sat in silence as they watched the final rays of the sun go down, and she clasped his hand in hers, lacing their fingers together and setting it in between them. Inuyasha felt calm being next to kagome, he almost forgot about transforming. She certainly had a way of finding beautiful places, he would never have even noticed this place before. They sat on the small grass covered hill, small patches of wild flowers were all around them. The stream was soothing as it rushed over the smooth silt base, and past a few rocks in the way.  
  
Kagome looked over to inuyasha as she saw the sun finally disappear completely. She was a little scared to watch him, she almost felt like she shouldn't since it might make him uncomfortable. But as she was about to turn her head away, she noticed that he started to glow faintly, and his hair started to turn from silver to an almost purple shade of black, starting from the roots down. He stared at the stream as he transformed, almost as if he didn't know it was happening. She looked him in the eyes as she watched them flash once then they were flooded with violet, almost like a liquid dye was being poured into them. Her gaze advanced to the top of his head, up to see his ears fold back against his skull and then slowly morph down to the side of his head where they formed into almost human looking ears, but slightly pointed. Then she watched the hand she was holding, as she felt the claws that were pressed against the top of her hand, pull back into his fingernail bed.  
  
Inuyasha felt the change come on, and wished kagome wasn't watching him so intently. He felt her eyes wonder over his body as he morphed. Unbeknownst to her though, he felt his strength leave him considerably, and he felt as if the life was being sucked from him. He almost felt like he was dying, as though his vitality was slowly being ripped from him.  
  
Then the change was over, and the subtle glow left him. He lifted his eyes to meet Kagome's awestricken ones. When she noticed the worried look in his eyes, she guessed that he had taken the look in her eyes the wrong way, so she quickly smiled at him. "does it hurt, inuyasha?", her eyes showing a bit of concern now.  
  
"no, it doesn't hurt. But it definitely isn't a pleasant feeling..."  
  
kagome squeezed his hand a bit and smiled again. "I wish you didn't have to see that, I must have looked really strange."  
  
"no, you didn't, not at all. I think it was quite stunning actually."  
  
He turned to her with a shocked look. 'stunning? That's a new one. I was taught that this was a despicable and horrible thing, not...stunning...but then again, she always did have a way in seeing the good and beauty in everything. ' he smiled back at her.  
  
They had lain down on the grass after a while of staring at the river below them. Now the stars had become visible, and Kagome, as always, adjusted her position so all that was in her view were the celestial bodies above her. "I think this has to be one of the most beautiful nights in the year. The February stars on a moonless night, doesn't get much better than this. Aye, inuyasha?" "Aye...it is remarkable"  
  
"Inuyasha?"  
  
"Yeah, Kagome?"  
  
"What should we do with this when we're done?" she lifted up the half of the shikon no tama that she wore around her neck.  
  
"I don't know...I think we should do something that we all agree on. Something that would help all of us if possible. We all worked and suffered equally to get this far, it's only fair."  
  
'Wow, he didn't even mention becoming a youkai...I'm sure its still his dream to have such power, but now he's willing to give that up for others happiness. He's become so different since I first met him...and especially now that he's human tonight, he's like a completely different person, its almost scary...I'll ask him just in case though, no hurt in that'  
  
"So, you've given up on becoming full youkai, inuyasha."  
  
Inuyasha continued to stare up at the sky, lost deep in thought, and the small content smile he held slowly disappeared. "I don't know kagome. You know it wouldn't be that easy to just forget something like that. I would jump at any opportunity usually, but in this case, I need to remember that there are others around me. And I know for one, that you don't want me to become a youkai...am I right?"  
  
"I don't know inuyasha, I don't really know what that would entail. I don't know if you'd be more like your brother, or become what you are when your demon blood takes over in battle." A picture of him slaughtering youkai's ruthlessly came into her mind, it was from when he had last transformed. He had slaughtered the threat, then some of the frightened villagers nearby, and then any other small youkai or animals within a half-mile radius. It had scared the hell out of all of them.  
  
"Neither do i...and I know that if I were to become the heartless beast I've turned into before, id be putting you and the others in danger...and I don't think that would be worth it."  
  
Inuyasha closed is eyes and sighed heavily. Then turned his head over to kagome and just looked into her eyes for a moment, trying to guess what she was thinking. He stood up and turned to her, lending a hand to help her up. "Lets go back, the others are probably wondering where we are. And I don't think that it's fair that you left Sango with Miroku for so long."  
  
"Oh no! Sango-chan!"  
  
They started on their way back; they weren't that far from camp so it wouldn't take long. "Arigato"  
  
"for what, kagome?"  
  
"For sharing that with me, I'm glad you didn't run from me again."  
  
"Its not like I really had a choice now is it?"  
  
"Ha, I guess not" kagome smiled at him and reached out for his hand, and they walked the rest of the way in silence.  
  
JAPANESE:  
  
Aa: yeah  
  
... I think that's all the new ones I used...  
  
Suteki: so, youz like? I tried to through in a little fluff in there, to keep everyone entertained until I can get to the battle with Naraku. And don't worry! That's coming some time within the next 2 chapters.  
  
I wasn't able to put everything in here that I wanted; I wrote too much and I didn't want to bombard all my readers with a really long chapter. So I'll put this one up, and then probably by tomorrow I'll have part 2 up!  
  
Next time: the group takes a break in a nearby hotspring, to calm their nerves. More development on what they plan on doing afterwards (mainly Sango, Miroku, and shippou ( since I've been mean and have left them out a lot) then we get a visit from Kouga-kun! Yay! then they get ready to face Naraku. And, I'll say it again, incase you forgot, R/R please! I know people are reading, bur no one listens to my cries for help...its pretty discouraging sniff sniff. Alrighty then, see you in chapter 4 – disfavored alliances part 2: Kouga to the rescue! 


	4. Disfavored Alliances part 2 Enter Kouga!

Disclaimer: not yet...I'm still saving my money so I can make an offer Rumiko Takahashi can't refuse...only the "rest-of-the-money-I'll-make-in-my- lifetime" to go.  
  
Suteki: okay, here's the continuation. I STILL haven't heard a word from any of my readers. I'll patient though. I'm having fun with it, and I'm positive that people will start liking it more and more when I get to the battle. All right, that's all I got to say then I guess. Oh yeah, I'm gonna like writing this chapter because I get to borrow Kouga-kun! God I love him.  
  
Chapter 3  
Disfavored Alliances: part 2 – Enter Kouga!  
  
When the two of them returned Sango had been ecstatic. They had found her pinning Miroku to the ground with her hiraikotsu while he yelled, "I thought you where unconscious and needed mouth to mouth, it was completely harmless I swear! All with good intent! My dear Sango please calm your rage before you do something you will regret!"  
  
The couple coming from the woods sighed in unison. Kagome had to pry Sango off of him and then inuyasha had to hold her back as kagome helped the poor lecherous monk off the ground. She then dragged Sango to the nearby hot springs and told inuyasha to do the same with the monk. (Since there were two hot springs that connected to the same river, but neither party could see the other from where they were, thank goodness). They didn't need to fight with shippou though, since he and Kirara had played what looked like tag for hours on end, both were zonked out in a little ball by the fire. So the group left them to be, if they were to awake, they would find them.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Thank you kagome, I really needed this. That damn Bouzo get me so riled up."  
  
"Its alright Sango, I think we all needed to relax tonight. I'm just glad that we were able to find a place near such a nice hot spring. The waters perfect, not too hot, and not too many cold spots. Not to mention we all get our own personal springs."  
  
Kagome stretched out on the silky bed of the spring, digging her toes into the warm soil. Sango watched her and did the same, flinching back a little when her toes dug into a particularly hot spot in the dirt.  
  
Inuyasha had literally thrown Miroku into the spring; he had been trying to escape to get a peek at the girls, "to make sure they were alright" as he put it. Then he quickly stripped down and jumped in himself, landing on top of the monk that was in the middle of trying to escape again.  
  
"Aahhhh! Inuyasha, you psychopathic lunatic! You trying to break my back?"  
  
"If that's what it'll take to keep you away from the girls, then, yes."  
  
After some time, the girls were busy talking about nothing in particular, while the guys just sat in silence.  
  
"Oi, Sango" "Yeah kagome?"  
  
"I'll wash your back if you wash mine!"  
  
"Alright, turn around"  
  
Sango scrubbed her back with the strange "loofa" creature that she always brought from her time. Kagome just leaned forward and enjoyed it.  
  
"Okay, your turn Sango, thank you, that felt great."  
  
Sango turned around so her back faced kagome. Kagome brushed Sango's long damp hair over her shoulders and out of the way; instantly her eyes fell to the scar left from her younger brother, Kohaku...  
  
"Sango-Chan...what do you suppose will happen to Kohaku? I know you've probably thought it over, and have realized that his jewel shard will need to be removed one way or the other..."  
  
Sango sat quiet for a moment, and kagome could feel her friends body shake under her hand...'she's crying...oh no, I didn't want to upset her this much. But I know that we need to talk about it before the time comes when we confront him and Naraku.'  
  
"I don't know what I'll do...I understand that either way, his shards going to have to be removed from his back...along with his life. So, I guess there's not really much I can do...except, I want to be the one to take the shard, not Naraku, not even you kagome-Chan..."  
  
"...Sango..."  
  
"I want a chance to see if I can completely rid him of naraku's control once and for all. So, that way, he can die in peace, and so can I. I want to hold him in my arms and look into his eyes, eyes that show emotion, ones that I remember the young, innocent, and loving Kohaku having. Not the cold and confused ones I see in him now."  
  
With that, she put her face in her hands and gave way to racking sobs that she had apparently been holding in for several years. There was nothing kagome could do, she knew that. So, she simply cradled her distressed friend in her arms, rocking her, and whispering words of encouragement into her ear. "gambatte kud asai...he'll be happy Sango, he'll be happy to know that he's free, and that you were there to free him..."  
  
A few dozen yards away, Miroku and inuyasha continued to sit in silence. But if inuyasha wasn't human on this night, he would have been able to detect the scent of tears. He could have even tasted them, for they were also saturating the water to the point that they were in the steam that hovered over the guys' hot spring. But nonetheless, he wasn't in his hanyou form, so he sat as silent and undisturbed as his monk friend. Actually, he was becoming uncomfortable at how calm things were...  
  
"so Miroku...what is it that you plan to do after this is all over anyways? You've never really mentioned it before..."  
  
"I'm not really sure myself inuyasha. I have no family to return too. And I have no real home. I guess I'll just start a new, as would be the plan for most of us I presume...I would love nothing more than to settle down and have a family..."  
  
"you, settle down?? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. What with the way you're chasing around every female creature you see walk by."  
  
"you see my dear friend, "his voice dripping with sarcasm, "I know that I wouldn't be able to settle down at the moment, so I figure, why not have fun now? Live every day as if it were your last, for tomorrow was never promised to any of our lowly souls. Wouldn't you agree inuyasha?"  
  
"keh, that's about what we do now, isn't it? We live each day fighting monsters, putting all of our lives on the line, not really worrying about 'tomorrow' ever arriving."  
  
"then why is it...that you have yet to make kagome yours? I know that you love her dearly, if you are not sure the both of you will survive the night, why not make it worth it?"  
  
"because monk, I am not a hormone crazed Hentai like yourself. Besides, what makes you think that there is anything between the two of us?! Mind your own god damned business."  
  
Miroku smirked at how defensive inuyasha always got when he mentioned his relationship, or lack-there-of, with the beautiful young miko kagome. He was starting to get annoyed. Since he wasn't getting any action from Sango, he was relying on his friend to make the moves on kagome, so he'd have some entertainment along they're trip. But the sexual tension between the two drove him insane sometimes.  
  
"well if you don't mind me asking, what is it that you plan to do once we destroy Naraku?" "feh! Depends on whether we all survive this thing. To tell you the truth, I haven't had anything in mind, just go with the wind I guess. See what happens, and then just go with it."  
  
The conversation would have persisted, but they heard a scream from the other end of the creak.  
  
"you guys!! There's 2 jewel shards coming at us fast! You had better...oh no..."  
  
"KAGOME?! ARE YOU OKAY??" but there was no reply on the other end.  
  
" ANSWER ME DAMMIT!...crap Miroku, what's going on?"  
  
kagome still had Sango in her arms when she felt the tang of shards, and they were approaching at an alarming rate. She tried to warn the others, but it was too late, the culprit stood infront of her before she could finish voicing her warning.  
  
"kou-kouga...Kun?" kagome was frozen in disbelief. There stood Kouga, the prince of the demon wolf tribe, in all his glory. She noticed how tan his skin looked, even in the night. He had nothing on but a few of his fur wraps, on his arms, legs, shoulders, and hips. She started to blush unfortunately, since she knew he would most definitely get the wrong idea. 'why is Kouga here? And why is he looking at me so weird?...oh F***!'  
  
kagome tried to hide herself from his view by pressing her body against Sango's, only allowing him to see her back. although neither of them were completely naked, because they had learned to wear what kagome called 'stringed bikinis', as a lesson from all the unwanted attention they got from Houshi-sama. But she was still showing too much flesh to feel comfortable infront of him, since she knew that no women around here ever wore anything so skimpy.  
  
"Kouga-kun! What the hell are you doing here? Trying to scare the hell out of us?"  
  
He stayed speechless, jaw on the ground. 'what the hell was his woman wearing? She wasn't naked, but what in the seven hells was that thing?'  
  
"oh! Kagome, gomen. I didn't mean too. Where's dog breath? I can't smell him in the area. I smell the Houshi...wait, what's that?"  
  
'oh no! he smells the human inuyasha...inuyasha would be pissed if Kouga saw him in his human form!' she had to stop him from finding out.  
  
"Kouga, don't! Wait!" but it was too late, Kouga was overwhelmed in curiosity. He could smell inuyasha, but at the same time, it wasn't really him. It was a human aura he felt, not a trace on youki in it.  
  
Inuyasha and Miroku had hurried to throw on their clothes to see what kagome was trying to warn them about. They were about to turn and run towards them, but inuyasha ran straight into something hard and...fluffy?  
  
'Sesshoumaru?' he thought. But when he looked up, he was struck with fear. 'oh shit! No! anyone bit him, I would have rather it be Naraku! Dammit!' he didn't notice, but the last curse was spoken out loud.  
  
"Dog Crap, is that you? What in Kami's name happened to you? You're, you're...human?" inuyasha tried to growl in reply, but it just sounded like a whimpered cough. Kouga smirked at the pathetic noise he knew was meant to be a threatening growl.  
  
"this is great. I never knew this about you, this is quite interesting. I've heard rumors of hanyou's that turned human at times. But who would have thought that the all-powerful 'Lord Inuyasha', 'protector of my woman', would be among those unfortunate ones. I should have guessed really." Inuyasha was raging in anger. 'how dare this flea bitten wolf insult him like that?'  
  
Luckily, though, Kagome and Sango came running down the path along the stream, trying to catch up with Kouga. Although, in their hurry, they had forgotten to change. They saw a very pissed off inuyasha, glaring up at the laughing wolf prince.  
  
'Oh crap...too late. I'm so sorry inuyasha.'  
  
Inuyasha would have taken a swing at Kouga, but he heard footsteps running towards them, so he glanced over his rivals shoulder. What he saw made him completely forget that he was totally humiliated, not to mention just a tad bit angry. There was his kagome, running through the forest, almost...naked. 'What the hell? Did Kouga see her like that?! Great, he's never gonna leave if he has the choice to gawk at his wannabe-mate, in almost nothing.'  
  
With that, he ran to meet her, as kagome started to say his name, he grabbed her and threw her to the ground underneath him.  
  
"Dog Crap! What in the seven depths of hell, do you think you're doing to my woman? Get off of her!"  
  
inuyasha didn't pay attention, but kagome was equally confused, and was blushing ferociously.  
  
"in-inu...yasha? What are you doing?"  
  
inuyasha couldn't help but stare at her for a moment, also blushing when he realized what it must look like to everyone. So he quickly ripped of his fire rat coat and wrapped her in it. "what were you thinking wench? Running around like that, and infront of him? What, are you trying to impress him or something?" he stated as he rose her to her feet, and quickly turned around in an effort to conceal his blush.  
  
But before she could answer, Kouga was between the two of them, holding Kagome's hands in his. "kagome, did this jerk off hurt you?..." then his eyes went wide, and without a word, he started undressing her again. 'oh gods, what are they doing to me?' she thought to herself. "Kouga-kun, what are you doing?" she asked while trying to stop his hands from removing the fabric. "I'm sorry kagome, but I can't stand it! You smell like dog breath! You have to take this off!"  
  
"jackass! Get away from her!" inuyasha couldn't control himself, and he swung at the back of Kouga's head, knuckles cracking against his skull.  
  
Meanwhile, Sango was off to the side, partially hiding herself behind a bush when she noticed the intense gaze she was receiving from Miroku. But now, both her and Miroku's eyes were wide as they watched inuyasha and Kouga fighting about Kagome's clothing. When they saw inuyasha attack Kouga, Miroku started to move towards them, knowing that inuyasha was defenseless in his current state; and Sango tried to get back to her clothes unnoticed, also knowing that she might be needed to break up the two, and didn't want to have to do it in her water proof under garments.  
  
Kagome was gonna die. First inuyasha pounces on top of her for some unknown reason. And then here's Kouga, trying to undress her? What in the world was going on? They should be fighting over Inuyasha's appearance shouldn't they? When she came out of her thoughts, she saw the two men throwing fists at each other. Inuyasha, off course, was receiving most of the punches, and barely laying a hand on Kouga. 'crap, this isn't good, there's no way inuyasha can hold his own.'  
  
"Kouga! Stop it! Leave inuyasha alone. You too inuyasha! Stop this!"  
  
"no kagome, you are my woman, and once I get rid of this hanyou-gone-human, I can take you away with you, and make you my mate officially. "kagome blushed again.  
  
"keh! You bastard, you're not taking her anywhere. You have to get through me first. And besides, what makes you think that she actually wants to go anywhere with you, crap-for-brains?" "its obvious, why else would she have come after me in that little thing she's wearing?" Kouga grinned as he hit inuyasha low in the gut.  
  
'please forgive me inuyasha, believe me, if Kouga had one of these id do it to him instead.'  
  
"Osuwari!"  
  
"NOO! Oomph!!". Inuyasha had been in the air, flying towards his opponent when kagome used the magic word, and he plummeted a good 4 feet down to meet the ground with his face.  
  
"serves you right, damn dog."  
  
"Kouga, will you come with me?"  
  
"where too? I still have to kill flea boy right here?".  
  
Inuyasha's curses were muffled by the soil of the earth. 'where's she taking him? Dammit, why cant she do that to Kouga?'  
  
But by the time the spell wore off, they were both gone. Sango came running back in full attire, followed by the monk, who had apparently gone to spy on her when he saw kagome step in. "where's kagome-Chan, and Kouga?  
  
"feh, kagome ran off with him somewhere."  
  
Kagome lead Kouga back to the campsite. She told him to stand still as she rummaged through a small bag she had with her. Inside she found an antique wooden necklace she had found in Kaede's hut. She stood infront of Kouga, 'I hope I can do this...' she held out the necklace and put it around her friends neck. He stared at it in confusion, but before he could ask her about the strange gift, she laid a hand around it, closed her eyes, and started to chant something. The rosary glowed for a moment, and then she stopped. She backed away from him. 'the word, I need a different word than "sit", or both of them will get hurt instead of the one I want. Lets see...ah! Got it!'  
  
"Shita, otoko!"  
  
she hoped it would work, and all her doubts about her abilities as a miko vanished when she saw the rosary respond and send the wolf boy to the ground with a loud "Thud!"  
  
"KA-KAGOME! Why'd you put this thing on me! I thought it was Inuyasha's personal torture! Not mine!"  
  
"sorry Kouga-kun, its for both or your safety. And my comfort."  
  
Before he could get up, her heard kagome run back towards the stream where they had left her friends. When she got there, she saw inuyasha and the others sitting down, most of them confused, and one looked like he was going to explode.  
  
"So, you go off to mate with the wolf pup?!"  
  
"No inuyasha! For your information..." she was cut off by a hysterical kitsune. "Inuyasha inuyasha!! You'll never guess what okasan did to Kouga!"  
  
"Oh I can. Wait, you saw them! What kind of example are you setting for your little boy wench?" Shippou just blinked in confusion. "No no inuyasha, she put one of these things on him!" he tugged at the rosary around Inuyasha's neck. This time it was Inuyasha's turn to blink in confusion..."you what?"  
  
"Yep, and here he comes now, you can see for yourself." Sure enough, the group saw the enraged whirlwind coming towards them.  
  
"Inuyasha you arsehole! Did you trick her into doing this to me? You put a spell on her didn't you?!"  
  
"No you worthless wolf, I told you she didn't love you."  
  
"That's not saying much for you now, is it?"  
  
"Alright you two, shut up! I can threaten the both of you now, so behave!"  
  
They both quickly shut up.  
  
"Okay, good. Now Kouga, why are you here?"  
  
"Well, I was on my way to confirm the suspicions I was informed about by a neighboring clan. They said that they had heard and witnessed some things that connected to Naraku. Each message I received led me to believe that he was here. And along the way, I caught your scent and came to see if you were coming for Naraku also. Are you?"  
  
"Yes Kouga-sama, we heard from our sources that Naraku was hiding here."  
  
Inuyasha was glaring at Kouga from under his bangs. He had made sure that he was sitting next to kagome, which wasn't much of a problem since she was still wearing his hakama, and Kouga seriously didn't appear to want anything to do with it.  
  
"Well, this is perfect then. Kouga-kun, would you like to assist us in the battle with Naraku? We were planning on paying him a little visit first thing in the morning."  
  
"Oh I see, because poor inuyasha over here is having a lapse at the moment, he's not strong enough to protect you or himself. I told you that you would have been safer with me. If I had known that he was like this once a month, I would never have allowed you to stay with him in the first place."  
  
"Ay! She's alive still ain't she?!"  
  
"Doesn't matter arsehole! You probably couldn't sense a boulder coming at you, let alone a demon!"  
  
As Kouga picked up the largest rock he could find, which was about the size of his head, and started to throw it towards inuyasha, kagome said it again, "Kouga? Shita otoko!" Kouga, for the second time within the hour, hit the ground with a sickening crunch as the rock landed on his back after he flew to the ground.  
  
Inuyasha started laughing hysterically, "This is great kagome! Now I have a chance to kill him, and he cant even fight back." inuyasha got up and started towards him, bad move, "Osuwari."  
  
While everyone was getting their kicks out of watching the two rivals being slammed into the ground repeatedly, two red eyes watched them in a mirror held by a little girl that was pale as snow. "So, they finally made it? I will enjoy this battle, I will finally be rid of that bastard Naraku...but what's this? Inuyasha is a human? That's interesting. But he wont be much fun if he isn't able to use his demonic powers, so I'll just conveniently let this slip my mind when I report their arrival to Naraku, what do you think Kanna?"  
  
"..." the little girl remained silent, blank eyes unfocused on anything, but there was the visible threat of a tug at the corner of her mouth. "I think it's a good plan too, my sister"...  
  
JAPANESE:  
  
Bouzo: insulting term for Buddhist priest  
  
Gambatte kud asai: cheer up!/keep your chin up! (said to encourage someone basically(this might clear some things up for those who have watched the subbed anime.  
  
Shita otoko: down boy. (sorry, it was the only phrase I could think of besides, "heel", "bad boy", and "stop it". So, I thought this was the best)  
  
Suteki: so, what you think aye? I promised make it go faster, but I got carried away again. I hope you weren't too upset about Kouga getting a collar, but its like, the only thing I've never seen in other peoples stories, and I wanted something really original. And personally, I was starting to get mad that Kouga was always the one laughing at inuyasha, so I thought I'd just give him a wake up call., lol. I'm so mean. Alright, next chapter is the start of the fighting! And I mean, the GOOD fighting. So be patient, I try to be a fast updater, but I'm gonna be spending a little more time on this next chapter. Till then, tata! I know you're probably sick of me repeating myself, believe me, I am, but here I go: R/R! dozo to arigatou? (means "please and thank you") *u* 


	5. Confrontations

Disclaimer: if I did, I wouldn't tell you...id scream it from the mountains...oh well.  
  
Suteki: here we go, the much-awaited battle begins in this chapter. I'm expecting it to take up more than one chapter actually. ( I got lots of stuff I need time to unleash. Thank you Faye273 for being the first person to post a review on my fic! And also vampirecircusgirl31, who was the second to comment. Oh yeah, and id like to thank my good friend, hanyou_kagome, who just finished reading the story, thanks for the encouragement Shizuka (her nickname incase you know what the word means)! She's also agreed to help me with the story from this point on, so here she is!  
  
Shizuka: hey everyone! I hope you've enjoyed Suteki-Chan's story so far, you should all hear what she has in mind for the end of the fight! You see, she's gonna-  
  
Suteki: Shizuka shut up! (no pun intended)I've kept it secret for a reason!  
  
Shizuka: hey, you're the one typing this, you don't have to listen to me, lol. fine, you're no fun. But I'm sure the audience would rather get to the fighting instead of watching you make your stupid inside jokes in Japanese! *Turns to face the audience* Everyone, to clear up her nonsense, "Shizuka" means quiet, that's why she thought it was funny...I still don't know why I get "quiet", while she gets the stuck up name "beautiful sunset"...  
  
Suteki: you are just jealous cause I got the cooler stage name! And what do you mean, "watch"? They can't see or hear us! Baka...  
  
Shizuka: okay, just drop. Here you guys go! Hope you likey! ^_^  
  
Chapter 4: Confrontations  
  
After talking long into the night, the group finally decided to sleep. Kouga retreated to tell his clan what was happening, and promised kagome he'd be back.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Kagome was the first one to wake up. She looked over at Sango, and noticed that somehow, Miroku's sleeping bag had crept dangerously close to her, with one hand hanging out of it inches from Sango's backside. She looked up into the tree she suspected inuyasha to be in, and he wasn't there. Then she noticed that the sun hadn't completely risen, so she glanced behind her. And sure enough, a still very human inuyasha was leaned against a tree, a couple of feet away from kagome. She decided to take advantage of the silence, and walked off into the forest towards the stream. When she arrived, she sat on a rock by the waters' edge, looking towards the horizon where she could almost see the hint of the rising sun. She lowered her hands into the cool water, and then splashed some on her face. She relaxed and sat down on the bank, planning on watching the sunrise from where she was.  
  
Inuyasha had been awake when he heard kagome stirring. He kept his head low though, and just listened to her as she sat up, and then a few moments later got up and walked away. He opened his eyes and watched her fade into the darkness. He was planning on trying to get at least some sleep, but since he knew that wasn't going to happen, he decided to follow her.  
  
Kagome heard someone approach from behind her, and glanced over her shoulder. She had thought it was Sango, since she couldn't feel any youki aura in it, but she was surprised to see it was inuyasha. "I thought you were asleep inuyasha."  
  
"you know I can never sleep the night I'm human, I followed you because I was tired of being alone for so long, figured I'd keep you company if you did the same for me." He said nonchalantly.  
  
She smiled back at him, she was actually wishing she wasn't alone anyways. He sat down beside her, and looked to the horizon, the sun's rays barely peeking over the mountaintops.  
  
"I rarely ever get to watch the sun rise in my time. If it's not the pollution, it's the buildings."  
  
"I couldn't imagine not being able to see the sun rise...I've never had that problem before"  
  
"yeah, you never really know what you have until you lose it I guess."  
  
"yeah...I guess...". Inuyasha was at that moment, struck with the fact that they were going to face Naraku today, 'until you lose it? What if I lose her? I would have never known what was there if I lose her!'. He couldn't let that happen, he was going to take advantage of his human transformation, and try to express his feelings. He had to do it fast though, because the sun would ascend soon, and his demon blood would rise again and push his emotions aside until next new moon.  
  
"Umm... ka-kagome?"  
  
"What is it inuyasha?" she asked, smiling at him.  
  
'Oh crap! What the hell am I supposed to say now? Think of something genius, it's the truth or something she'll obviously knows a lie! Crap crap crap...'  
  
"Are you okay inuyasha? You're starting to sweat a little." She reached up and put her hand to get forehead checking for temperature, and then moved her hand to cup his cheek to see if he was hot there. When she touched him like that, he couldn't help it, he leaned into her gentle touch and raised his hand up to cover hers. Her eyes widened a little at first, but when he smiled at her and she met his gaze, she almost melted. They were both locked on each other's eyes, and neither of them really knew what was happening as they started leaning in towards each other. Their lips barely grazed each other's when kagome went rigid. 'Oh no! I shouldn't have tried to kiss her, she's scared now!' inuyasha worried to himself.  
  
Kagome couldn't help but be seduced by the look inuyasha had in his face, it was so soft and caring, and his touch was so warm and tender. She was so close to giving into her wildest fantasies when she felt those damned jewel shards, 'Kouga, you baka!'  
  
Inuyasha could hear the familiar sound of the wolfs whirlwind and knew why kagome had pulled away, 'I'm gonna kill that son-of-a...' but before he could even finish cursing him, Kagome's voice broke through, "SHITA! OTOKO!"  
  
Kouga had just come into earshot when he heard kagome yell at him, 'what did she sa-, AHH!' and he came sliding infront of them, face buried in the dirt. Inuyasha smirked at him and stomped on his head.  
  
Kagome pulled her hand from Inuyasha's face, embarrassed that she had held it there even after he had let her go, and she blushed when she saw the questioning look on his face, with a hint of...despair? 'was he really going to kiss me? Or was he just fainting, and was just falling towards me...?'  
  
"KAGOME! Please tell me that was an accident! What did I do?"  
  
"Oh! I'm sorry Kouga-kun, I was, I was...yelling at inuyasha, he was getting too excited about the sun rising..." she lied. 'Gods that was lame, he's not gonna buy that!'  
  
"Feh!"  
  
"Oh, so dog boys turning hanyou again eh? Good, then I wont have to protect HIM from Naraku too!"  
  
Inuyasha stood up at just the right moment. The sun rose just as he did, causing him to transform as he ascended. Kouga tried as hard as he could not to stare as he started to glow, his hair streaked a steadfast silver, and he could feel his rivals demon powers rise into his aura again. "that answer your question jackass?"  
  
"you're still only a half demon, now if you could transform into a full youkai I might be impressed."  
  
Kagome noted the way inuyasha shrunk back alittle, at Kouga's statement. "that was below the belt Kouga, stop it. I'm going back to the camp, follow me only if you two think you can stop fighting and cooperate. We're going to need a little more of that if you want to preserve yourselves through the battle". She started to walk away, leaving Kouga with an almost hurt look in his eyes. Inuyasha was still pissed at Kouga. He had interrupted his ONLY chance at telling kagome that he loved her, and then he had to go and rub in the fact that instead of transforming into an undefeatable youkai as his brother, he only had the ability to turn into a human. And then kagome told them that they had to 'work together'?! 'like hell I will!'  
  
Inuyasha leaped into the trees in the direction kagome left in, welcoming back the ability to do so, and mumbling obscenities to Kouga under his breath.  
  
'get along with that bastard? I'm sorry kagome, Inuyasha's just not my favorite person in the world.' Then he took off after them.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Back at the camp, the clique listened to what Kouga had learned from his clans and his opinions as to how they would find Naraku. Kouga was always very serious when it came to something like this, they noticed. The thought getting their chance at Naraku was enough to make everyone's adrenaline peak, they needed to kill that bastard, for taking so much from each of them.  
  
The group was preparing to depart, when they felt a strong aura approaching them, even Miroku and Sango could feel it from a distance.  
  
Inuyasha and Kouga started to sniff the air, and everyone watched them for an answer. In unison they both said with malice in their voice, "Naraku..."  
  
"Naraku?! He must have found out we were coming for him somehow!"  
  
"that would appear to be the case Sango...prepare yourselves."  
  
They group couldn't see anyone, but they could all sense the dense, evil, atmosphere approaching them. Then, they gasped as they saw a figure ascend over the trees.  
  
"Kagura!"  
  
"of course, she's Naraku's incarnation, they have the same scent." as the young woman, seated upon an oversized feather heard what they were saying, she laughed coldly. "you were expecting Naraku? You should know him better than to be one to fight his own battles, am I right?"  
  
as she approached the ground, the feather suddenly went back to its normal size, and Kagura fell the last few dozen feet to the ground, her wind powers creating a small spiral of visible blue air which helped her to land softly.  
  
"Naraku has sent me to discard of you, to save him the trouble of doing it himself." Her voice sounding bored and held a tint of sarcasm, "I will kill all of you, and be taking the remaining shikon no kikara with me."  
  
"keh! What makes you think you defeat us, you delusional bitch?!"  
  
"tisk tisk, inuyasha. Ye of little faith, are we?"  
  
Kagura steps aside, to reveal another, smaller figure standing behind her.  
  
"Kanna? She brought Kanna with her?!"...'that little wench creeps me out! She looks like the children of the corn or something, those eyes...'  
  
"that's right miko, now your rescuer here cant use his wind scar anymore," she nodded her head towards inuyasha, who looked like he could rip her apart at any moment, 'he needs to learn to control his anger a little better, like his brother. What was his name again? Sesshou-something, oh well.'..."Too bad, looks like we have the advantage, again."  
  
"we've gotten around this problem before, and we can do it again. Your planning has been in vain I'm afraid, Kagura."  
  
Kagura narrowed her eyes at the monk, "we shall see."  
  
Kagura lifted her fan infront of her, and she let it drop open. The rest of them recognized her stance, and geared up as well. Inuyasha pulled out the tetsusaiga, which immediately transformed, Sango raised hiraikotsu over her shoulder, and Miroku positioned his staff before him. Kagome picked up her bow in one hand, with the other situated above her quiver, while Kouga crouched into an offensive pose, ready for hand-to-hand combat.  
  
Kagura smirked again, then lifted her fan above her head, paused for a second, and lowered it quickly. "DANCE OF BLADES!!"  
  
The group dodged about a dozen glowing, sharp edged blades of wind, watching as they exploded into the ground leaving nothing but craters in their wakes.  
  
"HIRAIKOTSU!" Sango let her boomerang fly as she was still in her midair evasive maneuver. Kagura stood still while she watched the weapon fly at her, and when it got about 5 feet within collision, a shield that was invisible until it was hit, deflected it. The shield buzzed and tiny blue shocks jumped where it had been hit, and the boomerang flew off into another direction.  
  
"dammit! Kannas' created a barrier around them!" they all looked to the little, emotionless girl, the mirror she was holding was glowing the same color as the shield they had seen.  
  
"and this is a problem? This little girl can't be that strong!"  
  
"NOO! Kouga!"  
  
but it was too late, Kouga lunged himself at the two sisters. When his claws met the force field, his hand sizzled against the solid sheet of power. "AHH! CRAP!" and he was violently thrown back.  
  
"Baka...watch and learn." Inuyasha approached near the barrier and held the tetsusaiga pointed at the invisible wall. They all watched as the sword began to glow red and spark.  
  
'crap, I can't let him break through!' Kagura reminded herself. She raised her fan again as inuyasha leaped at her, "DANCE OF DRAGONS!" she yelled, and she created sadistic looking funnels that struck the ground in random places, one of which hitting the dog demon.  
  
"INUYASHA!"  
  
no one could help him, they were all avoiding their own twister and couldn't get to him. When the attack diminished, Kagome's head shot in all directions, looking for the hanyou. She saw him, laying under a broken tree limb. She rushed over to him and dropped to his side. "inuyasha? Inuyasha?!...he's unconscious!" she tried to get the branch off him, but she wasn't strong enough. Meanwhile, the others were dodging more of Kagura's wind attacks, and at the same time, trying to weaken the aegis being created by Kanna's mirror.  
  
"there are only two ways to destroy the barrier! Either inuyasha uses his sword, or we have to attack the mirror directly!" shouted Miroku as he thrust his staff into the wall, only to have it warded off again.  
  
Kouga growled, 'that damn dog had to go and get knocked out just when we need him!' he ran over to join kagome, and quickly discarded of the bough on top of inuyasha. "Kouga-kun! Thank you." She spoke too soon she realized, when she watched him bend down and smack inuyasha in the face repeatedly. But before she could stop him, she noticed inuyasha stir.  
  
"inuyasha! Get up! You need to break the barrier, try again!"  
  
inuyasha looked up at kagome, and immediately stood up. 'I cant attack directly, she'll attack me again...Kuso...'  
  
he jumped out into the trees, rising kagome and Kouga's curiosity. "inu- inuyasha?"  
  
"dog face must have hit his head a little too hard, he's running in the wrong direction..."  
  
They didn't have any more time to figure out what he was doing, when a blade of wind was about to slice through them, but luckily, Kouga sensed it and bounded the two of them away.  
  
Kagome by this time was pissed off that Kagura was hiding behind a shield. She drew an arrow to her bow and aimed for Kanna's mirror. "hit it" she whispered to her arrow as it glowed in her miko energy, and she released it and let it take off towards her mark. As she let it go, she noticed a rustling in the trees above her. She looked up to see inuyasha spring from the branches above her. The tetsusaiga was already pulsing red, and he too was going for the shield.  
  
Kagura was too busy having her fun with the youkai exterminator, Houshi, and wolf prince to notice the activities behind her. She wouldn't have known either, if Kanna hadn't whispered to her, "Kagura ...", but it was too late. As she turned, she saw Kagome's miko-fused arrow prod into the shield and was attempting to get through. "ha! You think that your arrow is enough to get past this?"  
  
"maybe not, but how 'bout that?" Kagura followed Kagome's point to see Inuyasha's blade come into contact along with the arrow, and the barrier slowly dissipated, and she watched as the miko's arrow thrust into Kanna's mirror, and the mirrors' glass exploded into a million tiny slivers, energy spewing from inside.  
  
"NO! how dare you!!" and they all watched as Kanna fell to the ground limp, "that was her lifeline!" The angered wind sorceress waved her weapon furiously at the couple. Inuyasha evaded the haphazard attacks, but was unable to get to kagome. He watched as about 5 blades of wind, and 2 twisters headed for her, personally looking for her blood.  
  
"kagome!"  
  
"kagome okasan!" screamed Sango and shippou.  
  
But all their fears subsided as they watched kagome put her hands in front of her, and a barrier of her own surrounded her. The attacks clashed against her, and they could see her struggling as the last of the assault passed her.  
  
'the girl survived me attacks? Impossible! Seems we've found the variable in the plan, we never thought her powers could have expanded like this...damn her.' Kagura was now frustrated beyond belief. The barrier was gone, along with her sister, and she wasn't even able to do away with kagome, which was the only thing that could calm her. 'this isn't going to well on our part, I had better see what the bastard wants me to do.'  
  
Sango rushed to Kagome's side as soon as she had collapsed to her knees from the strain of using her power. Kagome was panting a little, but not too badly. "Kagome Chan! Are you okay?" "yes Sango Chan, thank you. But I'm fine." She slowly got to her feet with the help of her friend. When kagome looked up to where inuyasha was, she spotted something in the air behind him, "no! she's getting away!"  
  
"like hell she is!" inuyasha jumped into the air and swiped his sword at the ascending feather. Kagura spun around to look at him, and with a shift of her hand, she knocked him off course with a strong gust of her evil wind. Inuyasha slammed into the ground, but just as quick was in the air, only to be knocked back.  
  
Sango decided to take advantage of the distraction inuyasha was causing. She threw her hiraikotsu into the air, hoping to catch her in the back. But Kagura felt the disturbance in her wind behind her, this wouldn't be easy for her, she only had one hand to fight with, since she was holding Kanna's body in the other. But nonetheless, she waved her fan in the direction of the oncoming attack. Sango watched in horror as her own weapon was rebounded back at her. She turned to dodge it, but it was too late. The large boomerang slammed into her spine, knocking the wind out of her, and she was heaved into a boulder infront of her, creating a sickening thud as her tender body violently met the unyielding mass.  
  
"keh! When will you ever learn exterminator?" she cackled at the girls cringing form, which was not fortunate enough to be rendered unconscious. 'that should be enough to keep them busy', and it was. Everyone's concentration was momentarily lying on Sango, who was now being cradled by Miroku. And they didn't notice Kagura's absence until she was nearly out of view. Kouga was the first back into action, and ran after her on the ground. "Don't stand around! We have to follow her!"  
  
"why?"  
  
"she's going to lead us straight to Naraku, baka!", since he couldn't lose trace of her, he didn't wait for them to answer him.  
  
"but inuyasha, what about Sango? We can't just leave her behind. She has to be there to fight him as well."  
  
"monk! How is she?"  
  
"she's not good inuyasha, she'll live, but her bodies too soar to function at the moment...she might even be paralyzed after an attack like that..."  
  
"I'll, be alright...don't worry about me, we'll meet you there in a while. Just as long as you promise to save some for me..."  
  
"we will Sango Chan, don't worry. Just rest for now."  
  
"arigato..." but she passed out from the pain before she could say more.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
Inuyasha and kagome had left Miroku, Sango, shippou, and Kirara in the camp, and quickly followed Kouga's scent, so that there wasn't the risk that he would be left alone to battle Naraku. They seemed to run forever, the anticipation was driving them frantic. They both didn't know what to expect when they found him. But finally, they knew, it was all going to end, one way or another...  
  
Suteki: I'm soooooo sorry for making this one so much shorter than the others. I've had so many distractions as of late, and I've been scared of doing the battle with Naraku 'cause I want it to be perfect.  
  
Shizuka: ha! Why cant you make other things perfect like like your room. Have you ever seen the floor in there before? I don't even know if you've got carpet or wood under all that crap.  
  
Suteki: Urusai! You could help you know. You promised you'd help me with this and what have you been doing this whole time? Playing with my cat! Leave Bones alone! You're getting cat hair all over me and the keyboard, and its getting in my eyes.  
  
Shizuka rubs cat hair covered hands all over Suteki's face  
  
Suteki: ahh! You little, you got it in my mouth! Come here!  
  
Suteki and Shizuka rumble across the ground, Shizuka knocks Suteki unconscious  
  
Bones: mew?  
  
Shizuka: alrighty, next chapter WILL be the entrance of Naraku, we promise! Please review, and once again thank you to all that have already. Suggestions ARE appreciated too. Come on, make this exciting for us! Its not like this bimbos paying me, lol. j/k.  
  
Okay, next time. Battle with Naraku begins (Naraku personally). Kohaku appears, will his misfortunate fate become a reality? And more! Jaa mata!! 


	6. To Lose A Friend

Disclaimer: I don't own inuyasha, so don't sue me dammit!  
  
Suteki: hey there! Alright, I'm sorry if the stories going slow, but I promise it will get exciting soon. Shizuka is visiting family out of town, so she will not be gracing us with her presence. Helper my ass...oh well. I guess I'll shut up and let you get on with the story ^_^  
  
Chapter 5: To Lose a Friend  
  
Inuyasha and kagome continued to run through the trees as fast as light, dodging limbs and tree trunks. Suddenly, inuyasha came to an uncomfortable halt. "inuyasha?! What's wrong?"  
  
"I...I smell wolf boys blood..."  
  
"what!?"  
  
"its not a lot of it, but its fresh and nearby," inuyasha said reassuringly, and immediately bounded off again, now also sensing a familiar presence in front of him.  
  
"the pull of shikon shards, they're close now. We must be near Naraku."  
  
Inuyasha leaped out of the trees and started to run and jump on top of them, trying to see ahead. They soon came upon a large clearing, where they could make out a few figures that were fighting. Actually, two were fighting while the other stood at the sidelines.  
  
As they landed at the edge of the clearing, they watched as Kouga was fighting with Kagura, dodging her "dance of blades" attack. Then, they're attention shifted as they heard a familiar voice, "ku ku ku, its about time you got here, inuyasha. Oh, and how kind of you to bring me the remaining jewel fragments, miko."  
  
"Naraku you bastard. We finally found you. I'm surprised to even see you here, thought for sure you'd be in hiding. Cowering while you let one of your incarnations finish us off, like the damn despicable coward that you are.  
  
"fool, inuyasha. I couldn't let them fight this battle, this one is special. I want to wring out your neck with my own two hands."  
  
Meanwhile, Kagome's main focus was on Kouga, who was having a hard time dealing with the wind sorceress by himself. "Kouga-kun! Are you alright?!"  
  
Kouga was slicing at Kagura with his Kantana when he heard Kagome's voice. He was so busy trying to save his life that he hadn't even noticed them arrive. "Aa, kagome. I'm fine. What took you guys so long?" he paused as he avoided another assault, "did dog boy get lost?"  
  
Kagome didn't answer, she was too intent on trying to help Kouga. 'I'll have to distract her, Kouga's waring out quickly'. With that resolution, she notched an arrow into her bow, and let it fly at Kagura. She didn't really have any intention of actually hitting her; she knew well by now that Kagura was able to deflect attacks that traveled through the air. As expected, Kagura's evil wind spun the arrow off course, but since she was fighting Kouga, the arrow barely missed her, whizzing past her face.  
  
Kagura spun around angrily, not liking being caught off guard like that, and she was still pissed that the miko who killed her sister was still alive and well. Kagome's plan worked though, she had obtained her full attention, and Kouga was allowed a moments rest. "kagome! What are you doing?!"  
  
"Saving your ass Kouga!" she yelled back as she dodged the mad-woman's sporadic attacks. Kouga's yelling caught Inuyasha's attention, who at the moment had been staring down Naraku. "kagome! Be careful" Naraku was mad that inuyasha had ignored him and turned his attention to that, girl. He silently lunged at him. His right arm turned into a large, green, tentacle, and he slashed out at inuyasha.  
  
"AGH! You bastard!" inuyasha had been caught in the side by the attack, and the blood was already starting to soak into his outer haori. "ku, you should pay more attention to your own life then, shouldn't you?"  
  
"shut up Naraku," inuyasha unsheathed the tetsusaiga, and swiped at Naraku, who easily avoided it.  
  
Meanwhile, Kagura was becoming more and more aggravated since she had hardly landed a blow to kagome. 'this girl, I've never fought her one on one, how could a human be so strong? Even if she is a miko, she's even stronger than that Kikyou bitch ever was...' But, little did she know, that kagome was more human, than Kagura was giving her credit for...she was getting tired. 'I don't know how much longer I can hold up like this. I need to hit her, and stop running! Come on kagome, play some offense, and lose some defense.' She pulled an arrow back as the battle paused for a second. Kagura saw this, and wasn't about to let her carry through with the attack; she flew infront of her as fast as she could. Kagome jumped back, not used to Kagura fighting at close range. She lifted the bow over her head, trying to back away enough to fire, and that's all Kagura needed, she let loose one of her blades, slicing the girls' bow clear in half. 'NO, not my bow! How am I going to fight her now? That was my best weapon!'  
  
"HA! Now what are you going to do miko? No more purifying arrows, this is going to be over very fast. Don't worry though, I'm going to make sure you die slow and painfully. I would have saved myself the trouble, but you took the only company I had in the world from me, you will pay"  
  
"Kagome!" Kouga tried to stand, but he had been sliced in the back of his calf and hamstring from Kagura's attempts at his jewel shards before they're arrival.  
  
"Kouga-kun! Stay back! You're in no shape to fight, just let me handle her!"  
  
Kagura was now getting annoyed by the sound of the worried wolf. 'Why wont he shut up!' and she diverted one of her attacks towards him instead of the girl. "Kouga! Abunai!" but it was too late, he couldn't get away from it. "SHITA OTOKO!" and Kouga fell flat on his back and the blade slammed into his chest instead of his face, where it was heading before. Luckily, his armor blocked most of the attack, although it ended up shattering, but it kept the blade from slicing him through nonetheless.  
  
"Kagome, "he tried to stand again, but quickly met the ground. 'Dammit, I can't protect her, I'm useless. I wish that I could have had some part in revenging what Naraku had done to clan, but it seems as if I have failed them again...wait!'  
  
Kagome was back to evading Kagura's attacks, since she wasn't sure if she had enough strength to create a shield again, she was just waiting for herself to think of a plan. She prayed that Kouga was alright, he didn't seem to be bleeding too bad, and he didn't appear to be in that much pain. Inuyasha was having a hard time with Naraku, who had now turned both his arms, and legs into about 20 deadly tentacles. He'd cut one off, just to have another 2 grow in its place, he wasn't getting far. Although, he was able to protect himself from further injury, he only had 2 large gashes in his sides, but nothing that would immobilize him yet. When he saw what Kagura did to Kagome's weapon, his heart missed a beat, but he had convinced himself that she was strong enough to handle herself. Besides, it was better that she was fighting Kagura, and not Naraku as well, as would be the case if he were to assist her. But, seeing Kouga unable to help wasn't very settling. 'the faster I deal with this asshole, the faster I can get to kagome...I just hope we both last that long'  
  
"Kagome!"  
  
Kagome looked over to where Kouga was, and noticed that he had crawled closer to her, but he was still a good 40 feet away. "What is it Kouga?!" she was worried by the sound of anguish and haste in his voice.  
  
"Kagome, you must come closer." She tried to get closer to him, Kagura didn't really seem to notice them talking, she was still fighting blindly, her eyes flashing a more fierce-some red than ever before. She was about 10 feet from the injured wolf, not wanting to get too close, for fear he become involved in the battle again. She watched as he sat up, and to her horror, dug into his own shins with his claws. "Kouga! What are you..." she was silenced as she saw him pull out, his jewel shards, holding them in his palm while sheer pain crossed over his features. With the last bit of strength, he tossed them towards the horrified kagome.  
  
"here, kagome...this way...at least part of me can help you...and revenge the death of my comrades...I'm sorry I couldn't protect you more...looks like dog boy actually won this battle, in this lifetime anyways...I hope he treats you well...or I'll kill him again when he joins me in hell...no matter what, don't give up...remember that you're fighting for the both of us now...I was privileged to be your friend at least, and I wouldn't give that up for the world...my dear kagome..." and with that, he fell to the ground, landing on his side.  
  
"kou-kou...Kouga-KUN!!!" kagome forgot all about Kagura, and dashed to her fallen friends' side. She lifted him into her lap, and looked into his face. He had stopped breathing, and she felt for his pulse, only to feel the final beat of his heart. 'Kouga, no! how? He was doing fine!' she looked down at the jewel shards, 'those must have been keeping him from giving into his injuries...he must have had internal injuries from that last attack too...'  
  
"I'm sorry Kouga. You didn't deserve to die..."  
  
Kagura watched in curiosity as the wolf prince extracted his own jewel shards, and then died in the girls arms. But she was quickly overcome with her hatred when the girl spoke to her. "how could you Kagura?! Why did you kill my friend!?"  
  
"foolish bitch! For the same reason you killed my sister, he was in the way! Like how it feels?!" Kagome laid Kouga back on the ground, filled with a new resolve, she could feel the power surge through her as she placed her friends' two fragments of the jewel in her hand, and then fused them into the half sphere of the others.  
  
The power was felt by all three of them, causing even Naraku to stop his assault on the dog demon and look up. Kagome was looking straight into Kagura's eyes, and they could see her tear stained face, even though she had stopped crying. Kagura didn't like the way kagome was glaring at her, so she decided to do something about it. "stop staring bitch!" she rushed at kagome, "DANCE OF DRAGONS". As the funnels came close to kagome, they hit a shield of purified energy, and disappeared. Kagome ran at her and clutched onto the other girls shoulders. She stared into Kagura's red eyes, and Kagura was now officially scared when she noticed that the girls eyes had turned from a light brown, to a dark violet. "This is for what you've done to all of us in the past, and for what you did to Kouga and his comrades" they all stood in shock as Kagome's hands crackled purple on the wind sorceress' arms, causing her to scream in pain. She refused let go, until Kagura's eyes went black and she fell lifeless in her hold, then she stepped back and let her fall to the ground.  
  
Kagome stood above the dead girls body, and stared at it indifferently. She then moved her glaze to Naraku, who practically had his jaw on the floor internally, although he wouldn't let it show on his features. Naraku had never seen anyone with that much power before, 'how could her frail being withstand holding all that pure energy? I feel like I'm suffocating just from the pure aura that surrounds her...damn her'.  
  
Inuyasha did infact, have his jaw on the ground, he knew she was strong, but not that strong. 'she took care of her in a matter of seconds, when even a direct hit with my windscar barely fazed Kagura!' he then noticed her staring knives into Naraku, which also made him feel a little uncomfortable, 'if looks could kill, Naraku wouldn't still be standing...'  
  
Naraku was getting more pissed off by the second, he couldn't stand the look in the miko's eyes, a look like she knew something he didn't. And what's more, she had single handedly discarded of his two most powerful incarnations. Without warning, Naraku disappeared, only to reappear next to kagome. Kagome's eyes showed no hint of fear when she saw Naraku standing so close to her, which made him even more furious. He slammed his hand into her throat, and clutched it as hard as he could. "You should have more respect for me. Why don't you quiver in fear, you for one know what I am capable of. Now hand over the jewel shards like a good little girl"  
  
"Get your filthy hands off her!!!" inuyasha screamed as he ran to her defense, but before he could get there, he saw Kagome's eyes flash with power again. She didn't even lift a finger, and Naraku's hands began to sizzle against her flesh. "AHHG! YOU LITTLE BITCH!"  
  
Inuyasha swung his tetsusaiga in the air, "KAZE NO KIZU!!"  
  
Naraku was still holding his hands in pain when he saw Inuyasha's attack. He tried to jump out of the way, but the last blast hit him in the side, shattering the armor that he wore on his upper torso. Inuyasha ran to Kagome's side, who looked a bit faint and grabbed her by the shoulders.  
  
"Kagome?! What the hell was that? Are you all right? Say something dammit!" she stood there, staring right through him for a moment, until she spoke. "Inu-inuyasha? What happened? Why am I so tired?" she said warily. "You don't remember? You don't remember doing that?" he pointed at Kagura's dead form. "Its so foggy, it was like...I was watching myself from behind my own eyes. I don't know what happened, I've never felt that much power before. But, she killed Kouga...Kouga's gone..." her voice started to crack as she remembered the face and words of her dying friend. 'I loved him so much. I could never love him the way he claimed he did me, but he was one of my truest friends, he was always here for me...'  
  
Inuyasha stood in silence, half because he was a little annoyed at how emotional she was getting over Kouga; but he also gave a moment of silence in Kouga's behalf, although he wouldn't show it, he had had a lot of respect for him.  
  
Naraku wasn't liking the way this was going. He was sure that he would be able to ware down the dog demon, but this girl was throwing a wrench in his plans. 'She's strong, stronger than she herself knows. Her powers are growing even more from seeing her friend killed, foolish human. I'll have to take care of her first then.' Without being noticed by the still mourning couple, he began to move towards Kanna's dead corpse. He picked her up in his arms, and then swiftly moved to where Kagura was. This caught Kagome's attention, when she felt his presence behind her, and she spun around, expecting him to attack.  
  
Inuyasha and kagome both watched in curiosity as Naraku picked up both of his dead incarnations and held them for a moment. 'what the hell?! Is Naraku having an emotional moment over the loss of his creations? Keh! Of course not, he's up to no good, I can tell by that look in his eyes, he's planned something. But what do those two half to do with it?' kagome was also having the same thoughts, and couldn't get why he would need the dead girls.  
  
The worse of they're thoughts came true as they watched as he transformed into a being with the upper torso of his usual appearance, and the lower half made purely of green tentacles. He held each girl in one clutch, and they watched horrified as, what looked like a mouth appeared in the center of his lower body, baring teeth and all. He threw both of his incarnations in the pit one at a time, each time a body was consumed, his body flashed in newly found power.  
  
"This isn't good inuyasha, he's using their energy to strengthen himself." Inuyasha heard her, but didn't reply. 'Shit! How are we going to defeat him on our own when he's this strong?' just as his transformation was complete, they felt a familiar presence approaching them from behind.  
  
"Kirara!?"  
  
Suteki: alright, I know I said that you would see Kohaku in this one, but I cam up with this first. Kohaku will be in the next chapter for sure. Thank you to all that have reviewed! Be patient though, I work fulltime now so I don't have as much time to work on these, but I'll still give my all. So, thank you! 


	7. Kohakus Closed Fate

Disclaimer: Mou gamen dekinai!!  
  
Suteki: hey, alright, HERE'S the drama with Kohaku, alright? Hope you're satisfied with it!  
  
Shizuka: TADAIMA!!!  
  
Suteki: oh woopee...  
  
Shizuka: oh come on, you know you missed me! *runs and hugs Suteki in a bear hug*  
  
Suteki: ahh! Make it stop! SHITA!  
  
loud thud in the background  
  
Suteki & Shizuka: Kouga kun?!  
  
Kouga: WHY DOES EVERYONE KEEP DOING THAT TO ME??!!  
  
Shizuka: Kouga? But I thought Suteki killed you in the last chapter...*walks over to Kouga and tugs on his tail* so it really IS real huh?  
  
Kouga glares over at Shizuka, and grabs tail from her hand. And then glares at Suteki, who gives a half smile and weary laugh  
  
Kouga: so YOU'RE the one who made me die like that. And lose kagome to the stupid dog! You little, come here!  
  
Suteki: AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!  
  
Kouga chases Suteki around in circles while she screams frantically  
  
Shizuka: sigh  
  
Suteki wakes up whoa, that was weird, alright, here's the next chapter! ^_^  
  
Chapter 6: Kohaku's Closed Fate  
  
"Kirara?!" kagome yelled in surprise as she saw the yellow neko-youkai appear above the trees. She looked closer and saw Miroku guiding her, with Sango propped in his arms. Shippou was seated on Sango's shoulder, and appeared to be whispering words of comfort to her as he pat the back of her head tenderly with his hand.  
  
"Miroku brought Sango with him? But why? Did she regain her strength that quickly?"  
  
"it doesn't look like it inuyasha, she must have fought with him to bring her though." Kirara landed on the ground infront of them, and bent down, letting the monk and her owner slide off. Miroku stood while supporting Sango with his shoulder under one of her arms. "inuyasha! What's going on?" they were standing to inuyasha and Kagome's side, all keeping their eyes on the now glowing Naraku. By this time, Miroku had noted the fallen body of their companion Kouga, and the strange absence of Kagura, whom he thought they would be battling when they arrived.  
  
"Kagura killed Kouga, and then kagome killed Kagura," Miroku shot kagome a surprised glance as inuyasha continued his brief summary of what had transpired before their arrival, "and then before we could stop him, Naraku absorbed Kagura and Kanna into his own body, to gain their power of course."  
  
Naraku watched as the monk, demon exterminator, neko and kitsune youkai that traveled with inuyasha appeared on the scene. He smiled inwardly as he saw the one called Sango, and was even happier to see that she was wounded yet still determined to be there at the fight. 'this shall prove to be very interesting indeed. And here I thought that she wouldn't show up, depriving me of my awaited entertainment.' Naraku let out a small smirk that caught everyone's attention, even the up till now silent youkai exterminator. "Naraku you bastard, what have you done with my brother? You better not have absorbed him as well!"  
  
"my dear Sango, I would never dream of taking your brother from you without you being here to witness it yourself." Naraku smiled to himself, this time letting it show to the others. Sango was enraged at Naraku's mentioning killing her younger infront of her. She tried to step forward towards him, but Miroku wouldn't let her. "no Sango, you can't stand up to him. Remember our agreement, I wont let you leave until Kohaku is in sight." Sango's eyes brimmed with tears from frustration, and kagome rested a reassuring hand on her friends shoulder, smiling when Sango looked up at her. "Sango, he's right. You have to keep yourself safe, conserve your energy for when we see Kohaku. Knowing him, he's got something planned for him in this, he'll show up, don't worry."  
  
"and when he does, I'll take him back from Naraku, and finally free him from the faulty life he's been dealt."  
  
Naraku couldn't help it, it was all too perfect. If there was one thing in the world that he loved, it was to mess with people's emotions, kill them from the inside out.  
  
As the group stared at Naraku, all with a level of hatred in their glares, Naraku stood with a small, content little smile on his face, which only furthered the rage of the group. Inuyasha was the first to attack, having the shortest span of toleration for crap like this. "lets get this started! I'm tired of looking at your sorry ass! And stop with that damn smirking!" he swung at him, not expecting to hit him since he knew Naraku would have ample time to get out of the way of the attack. Sure enough, Naraku jumped out of the way, only laughing at his fellow hanyou. Then Miroku got infront of the girls, and held onto his prayer beads, ready to attack.  
  
"I wouldn't be doing that monk"  
  
"and why not?"  
  
Naraku smirks again, jumping back a few yards and grabs something from within the bushes. To their horror, the saw him holding Kohaku up by the collar. "ko-ko-kohaku!!" Sango tried to run towards Naraku again, and this time, Miroku wasn't able to hold her back. Sango dropped to the ground a couple of yards away from Naraku and her brother. "you let him go you bastard!" to her amazement, Naraku dropped the boy to his feet. She stared at him questioningly, and then back at her brother, who wasn't making any attempt at coming to her. Kohaku just stared at her with a blank look in his eyes. "what have you done to him? He wasn't like this before! You had given him back his control over his mind without the memories, but now it looks as if you've stolen his soul!" Naraku only grinned again, "kill her Kohaku" and without even a second to deny the order, Kohaku raised his weapon above his head, and lunged out at Sango. Sango was barely able to roll out of the way, "KOHAKU! Stop it! Its me, Sango!" she plead, but the boy showed no sign of emotion on his face. He threw his weapon at Sango, but she deflected it with her hiraikotsu.  
  
The rest of the group didn't know what to do, Sango was in trouble, but they couldn't fight Kohaku. Miroku focused his eyes on Naraku and stepped out towards him. Naraku was contently watching the siblings fight, but his attention was gained by the monk, when he saw him step forward again, still holding the prayer beads on his right hand. "foolish monk, you know that you can not use that against me. I cursed you with it, do you honestly think that I would allow you to use it to kill me?"  
  
"you're a despicable and heartless creature to do this to Sango-sama and Kohaku. And I cannot just stand by and watch them as you are, I have the power to help, thanks to you, and I shall use it." As he finished his sentence, he ripped away the rosary, "KAZAANA!" the wind tunnel opened, and slowly but surely, Naraku started to inch towards the hole. But of course, Naraku wouldn't easily be taken down, and without a word from their master, dozens of poisonous insects swarmed from behind Naraku. 'dammit, if I suck too many in, I'll die! I have to think of another way' Miroku tried to close his hand and put the prayer beads back on them, but he couldn't move. "what the hell?" he said out loud, a little bit of panic in his voice. Naraku smiled again, as he jumped out of the way of the vacuum, and watched as the helpless monk continued to consume the insects. "why can't I close my hand?!"  
  
"fool, I told you that I gave you that accursed hand, and I wouldn't allow you to use it against me. I can control what I create. I will not allow you to close your hand until you have died from the poison. Even now, you've consumed more poison than ever before.  
  
Inuyasha and kagome didn't know what to do. Sango was being attacked by her brother, while Miroku's hand was under Naraku's influence, and killing him. They couldn't get close enough to destroy the oncoming insects without being sucked into the void as well.  
  
"crap, what do we do kagome?"  
  
"I don't know inuyasha, but if we don't act fast, both of them will die!" kagome looked down at her hands, 'if only I still had my bow, I don't know if I have enough strength to use my energy any other way.' She continued to argue within herself whether or not she would be able to help in her state. Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a painful howl from the Houshi. Without second guessing herself, again, she threw her hands infront of herself and her hands began to glow in her miko energy.  
  
Inuyasha watched on as the monk withered in pain from the poison he was uncontrollably consuming. And then his attention was on kagome when he felt her power raise again. When he looked at her he saw her focus her power into her hands, and her eyes turn into a light violet again. 'she doesn't have enough power to do something like that again does she?' his worry was apparent on his face, and kagome noted it, but nodded to him, reassuring him that even though she looked to be acting out of panic, she was in complete control, and knew what she was doing. He nodded in understanding, and then looked ahead towards Miroku, the insects, and the still smirking Naraku, waiting to see what she would do.  
  
Kagome closed her eyes, she had to get this just right, or she might hurt Miroku as well. She quickly opened her eyes, and as she did, the power that was lingering at her palms, shot out towards Miroku, going through the back of his hand, and then forming a shield at the mouth of the void. The bugs disintegrated as they, one by one hit the barrier kagome was creating. Kagome was straining to keep the barrier up, she not only was fighting the impact of the youkai, but she could feel Naraku's influence in the wind tunnel, trying to suck in the holy barrier.  
  
Naraku's smirk turned into a scowl when he saw what the miko was trying to do. "I don't think so!" he shot out one of his tentacles towards her, which didn't go unnoticed by inuyasha or kagome. Inuyasha swung at it with his tetsusaiga, slicing it in half. But just then, another limb of Naraku's whizzed behind inuyasha, who tried to swing at it, but wasn't able to stop it. Kagome looked at the attack from the corner of her eye, not turning her head, and as she did, her eyes glowed brightly, and she formed a small shield infront of her, that deflected and destroyed the deadly assault. She turned her attention back to Miroku, the hive of insects exhausted, and Miroku's hand was now closed. Apparently, Naraku had lost his control over it when he failed in stopping kagome, thus her energy succeeded in purifying Miroku's hand. No matter though, the monk was slowly dying anyways, and Naraku's plan against Sango was still in action.  
  
Kagome ran over to Miroku's side, although she could barely stand up because of the level of power she had used. She lifted him into her lap and felt his head, he was burning up. Inuyasha looked on, not knowing what to do. "inuyasha, go make sure Sango is okay. Keep Kohaku at bay, but don't hurt him! I'll be there when I'm done with Miroku."  
  
Inuyasha nodded again and bound off to where Sango was still fighting off her brother. She was too tired to yell to him anymore, crying because she had lost her optimism in bringing him to his own consciousness. Inuyasha then noticed, the smell of another's tears, Kohaku was crying as well, although his face showed no emotion, tears were still streaming down his face. 'Kohaku must know what he's doing in the back of his mind, and he's trying to fight Naraku.'  
  
"Sango! Don't give up, Kohaku's trying to fight Naraku, he doesn't want to fight you, you have to help him!" Sango heard him, and she smiled and stopped crying. She had hope now, she would get her brother back, Naraku's hold on him was slipping.  
  
"Kohaku, you know who I am, you have to get a hold of yourself! Please, for me!"  
  
Kohaku visibly flinched when he heard the concern and love in the woman's voice. He stopped a few feet infront of her, his weapon trembling in his hand, teeth clenched. She now could see him trying to fight back Naraku's repeating voice in his head trying to tell him to kill her. The light in his eyes was fading in and out, as he fought for dominance. Naraku felt this, and wasn't very happy with the boys disobedience. 'how dare he disobey me! How could he get past my hold?'  
  
"Aneui?"  
  
"what did you say Kohaku? Kohaku, is that you? Stay with me!" she jumped up and embraced him, and he dropped his weapon to the floor. He could still hear Naraku's voice in his head, now becoming enraged. 'kill her! Kill her, what are you doing? I helped you, you are mine now Kohaku, or do you want me to return those horrible memories to you?' Kohaku didn't answer, and he heard Naraku smirk in his mind, 'very well then, maybe I should remind you of what I rid you of' Kohaku cringed as an image of him slicing his father throat with his own weapon played in his mind. "no, father! No...no" Kohaku fell limp into Sango's arms. 'father? Why did he say that? Oh no! Naraku must be giving him back his memories for not listening to him. "its okay Kohaku, don't let Naraku use those memories to make you stay with him. Accept them, its okay, I'm here for you."  
  
"no! they hurt too much, I cant live with that!" he cried into her shoulder  
  
"no Kohaku, it wasn't your fault, you have to realize that. I do not blame you for what happened. It was Naraku's doing! He's the one to blame, don't accept his help."  
  
Just as Sango's words began to seep in and he started to soften, Naraku put the image of him digging his weapon into Sango's back on that condemned day. 'she's lying Kohaku, she hates you. How could she forgive you after you did that to her? She's trying to hurt you for what you did to her!'  
  
Sango watched again as Kohaku tensed as if he just received a blow to the gut, and he let out a small whimper. Sango looked over to Naraku, who was glaring at Kohaku, eyes narrowed to slivers; he didn't even seem to notice Sango standing there staring at him. "Naraku!! You bastard, leave him alone, what lies are you feeding him?!" she screamed angrily, but Naraku didn't answer her.  
  
Meanwhile, kagome was trying to keep Miroku from passing out. "come on Miroku, fight it!"  
  
"I cant kagome-chan, I took in too much of the poison...its no use."  
  
Kagome didn't know what to do, how could she help? She didn't have any of her medicine with her. But then she remembered how Miroku had told her that once, the poison had been purified in his body by a shield of positive energy. 'I hope this works like it did before.' She placed her hands, one over his cursed hand, and the other on his chest. She closed her eyes, and once again focused her energy into her palms. "Miroku, I need your help for this. Concentrate on your spiritual powers, I'm going to insert a high level of pure energy into your body, if you aren't in a spiritual state, it may kill you. Are you ready?" Miroku listened to Kagome's instructions, and tried to calm himself. He focused on his meditating routine, and when he felt himself at peace, he nodded to her. She once again concentrated on her hands, trying to regulate the amount of energy she released, because even though he was a monk, too much power could still kill him. Miroku laid still, as he felt his body become enveloped in warmth, his whole body was tingling in response to the power he was being given. He could feel the headache subside, and he regained feeling in parts of his body that had become paralyzed. Soon, kagome opened her eyes, and her hands stopped glowing.  
  
"how do you feel Miroku?"  
  
"better amazingly, arigatou kagome-sama. I'm tired though, my body isn't used to holding so much energy at once."  
  
"such is expected, you will probably pass out, if you feel that your body wants to, its okay, you'll be okay now."  
  
Miroku was silent, and nodded again, relief spread over him as he let his mind be taken over by the blackness of sleep. Once kagome saw that he had fallen asleep, she stood up, looking around for Kirara. She spotted the pale yellow neko, she was watching over her master intently, knowing that she couldn't hurt the boy, she would watch until she was needed. "Kirara! Come over her please!" the neko heard the familiar voice, and flew over to the young miko. "Kirara, I need you to take Miroku away from here, not too far, just out of harms way please. I can't carry him myself." Kirara purred in response, and with a little help from kagome, hoisted the unconscious monk onto her back, and flew just past the outskirts of the clearing where shippou was watching from, and stayed there with him, still watching over Sango.  
  
Kagome then joined inuyasha where he was watching curiously at the turn in events with Sango and her brother. "what's happening inuyasha? Why is Kohaku crying?" "he's trying to fight off Naraku, Sango's trying to convince him to accept his memories instead of running from them into the haven that Naraku claims to provide."  
  
Kagome's features took on a look of horror, then anger. 'that bastard, how can he do that to poor Kohaku?' she could tell by the look on Naraku's face that it wasn't as easy to get him under control as he wished it to be. "Kohaku's strong, I'm pretty sure he can win this, especially with his sister with him. But that doesn't mean we can't help." She turned around to fully face Naraku, and gave him a death glare, which he didn't see, but he did feel it nonetheless in the back of his mind. But at the moment, he was concentrating on keeping Kohaku in his grasp.  
  
Inuyasha followed her gaze, and readied his sword. "I'll watch your back inuyasha, I can't attack him on my own, I've used to much energy as it is already, I'm pushing my limits."  
  
"I know, you had me worried back there when you were trying to help Miroku." Inuyasha looked at kagome, and then dove at Naraku.  
  
'this boy is useless to me, I cannot control him any longer, but what keeps me from hurting him in other ways?' before inuyasha could reach him, he grew spikes on one of his arms, and lashed them out towards the siblings. "Sango!! ABUNAI!! Behind you!" Sango looked over her shoulder, seeing the oncoming danger, she struggled with her hiraikotsu, deflecting the attack. But then another wave of them came from his other arm just as quick. Kohaku reached to the ground to grab his weapon, wanting to protect his sister. But, he dove right into Naraku's line of fire, and he took one of the spikes in the torso. 'gotcha' and as his goal was accomplished, he received a blow from inuyasha, his angry windscar taking out half of his body.  
  
"Kohaku!!! NOO!" Sango dropped to the ground, and rose the boy into her lap. She looked at the wound, 'oh no! this is bad, I don't know if he can make it through this, he's losing too much blood too fast, and the spear must have ripped some of his organs. No, Kohaku...'  
  
Kohaku winced in pain, not only from his injury, but he realized that he now remembered everything that he had done, clear as day.  
  
"its okay, Aneui, this is what I deserve for what I did to you, and to father, and the rest of our comrades and family."  
  
She shook her head frantically "No! Don't say that Kohaku! It wasn't you, you couldn't, and you wouldn't have done anything like that of your own initiative. It was Naraku who planned this whole thing from the beginning; Naraku is the one who killed them, not you. Listen to me Kohaku, I will never blame you for what happened, and I know that the rest of them wouldn't either. In fact, father would be very proud of you for being able to overcome Naraku's control today, he really would Kohaku."  
  
"Father? You really think so? I've only once before heard he was proud of me, I'm glad you think so."  
  
"Kohaku, I love you. Please, do not try to hide from who you are anymore. Tell me that you understand that none of this was your fault, please, I need to hear you say it." Sango was now crying again as she plead with her brother, as she saw him in so much pain, emotionally and also physically.  
  
"Thanks to you Sango, I'm happy now. Yes, I wont blame myself anymore, if you are not angry with me, that is enough for me. I am glad that I was able to see you again, and remember how much you meant to me. I've always looked up to you, and the whole time I was under Naraku's control, something told me that you would be the one that freed me, and I'm glad it was you. There's no one in the world I would have wanted to die with, than you."  
  
"Kohaku, don't say things like that..." her voice trailed and cracked, she knew he was right, "Kohaku, I'm happy that I was able to see your eyes again, to see you smile; and I am happy that I was able to free your distressed mind before it was too late. I can die happy now..." she smiled, knowing that she was able to settle her brothers soul, because, although his mind didn't remember what happened, she knew that his soul would for all eternity.  
  
"Sango, I am sorry though, that I was unable to live with you longer this way. Gomen"  
  
"Kohaku, baka, "she tried to laugh, "don't you know that we will be reborn together as siblings again? That's how it works."  
  
"No sister, this time, I'll be the eldest, and you will be the annoying younger sister." He smiled at her, and she laughed as more tears rolled down her cheeks. She lifted him up, so that his head rested on her shoulder, still careful not to cause him further pain. "I love you, my sister. Thank you for always being there for me, I will never forget...your face..."  
  
"I love you too...Kohaku. Kohaku? No! Not yet!" she slowly pulled him away from her, looking into his face, he was gone. She noticed that there was a single, unshed tear that was still welled up at the corner of his eyes, and as she cried his name one last time, it rolled down his face, landing on Sango's hand that was holding his limp head.  
  
Japanese  
  
Aneui: affectionate term for "elder sister" (this might clear some things up for those who have seen The Castle On The Other Side Of The Looking Glass, the 2nd inuyasha movie)  
  
Suteki: no, Kohaku! I hate killing people, I'm sorry everyone, it had to be done.  
  
Shizuka: yes, sorry she's such a heartless witch everyone.  
  
Suteki: hey! I am not! Argh! Okay, thanks for the reviews once again, I would appreciate some more for some encouragement.  
  
Shizuka: don't forget to tell them about the other thing  
  
Suteki: oh yeah, thanks for reminding me. I have another story that I wrote today, its called "Farewell My Beloved". It's a short one-shot about inuyasha and Kagome's future, warning: more death!, check it out please, and don't forget to R/R pertty pwease begging puppy dog eyes  
  
Shizuka: All right, next chapter, Sango passes out over the death of her brother and strain on her body; kagome and inuyasha are left alone to fight Naraku. Naraku gets annoyed with the still growing powers of kagome and decides to get her out of the picture, but how will inuyasha defeat him on his own? Can kagome still help?  
  
Suteki: thanks for writing the whole story here Shizuka, lol. Nothings sacred. All right, that chapters coming soon, so check back for it! Mette! 


	8. Fighting Fate, Kagomes the Contender

Disclaimer: I don't own inuyasha, so there!  
  
Suteki: alrighty, here's the, hopefully, last chapter involving the battle with Naraku. Hope you likey! And also, id like to thank kagome3004 again for her wonderful reviews! They were definitely entertaining to read, lol. okay, on with the story!  
  
Shizuka: yeah!!................sorry, had nothing else to say....oh wait, yeah I do, sorry to all those at fanfiction.net, I listened to your reviews and went back to check my stories. And sure enough, the paragraphs are running together, which they shouldn't be. We'll try to fix it, and if its confusing you, you can go to mediaminer and read it. its under the same name and authoress of course.  
  
Suteki: so good luck with that, gomen.  
  
Chapter 7: Fighting Fate, Kagome the Contender  
  
"Kohaku..." Sango brought her brothers body close to hers again, racking in her silent sobs. "no, poor Sango-Chan..."  
  
"its good that he died this way. At least he didn't die while still in the clutches of Naraku, having his jewel shard ripped from his back while he still lived. Its better for both of them this way kagome."  
  
"inuyasha" Kagome looked at inuyasha with an almost shocked look on her face, no matter how much he had changed, she would never get used to sympathy coming from his mouth like that. But she was quickly thrown from her stupor when there was a tug at the back of her mind, 'that's right, the jewel shard...I hate to do this so soon...forgive me Sango'. Kagome walked over to Sango and embraced her from behind 'shushing' her, trying to get her to calm down enough to listen to her. When her breathing slowed, and body stopped shaking, kagome whispered in her ear, "Sango-Chan...you know what you have to do, you said you wanted to do this, now its time..."  
  
Sango's eyes went wide, and she had fight to stop from losing herself again, but she knew what she had to do. She slowly turned Kohaku's body in her hold, making it so that his back pressed against her chest. She pulled him away, and looked down at his body, scared to follow through.  
  
Kagome saw the hesitation in her eyes, "it wont hurt him Sango-Chan, don't worry." Kagome held Sango's hand in her own, and carefully led it to rest over his spine. Sango waited there, not sure what to do. She gasped in surprise as her own hand started to glow in a pink light, and she could feel an even amount of power coming from Kagome's palm. She waited until she could feel something solid in her hand, and she pulled away. She looked at her hand, to see that she was holding her brother's piece of the shikon no tama, her brothers life was now being held at her fingertips.  
  
Kagome put her hand under Sango's, and waited as Sango dropped the shard, and then fell to the ground unconscious, her body exhausted from physical and emotional trauma, and without a word, Kirara came from her hiding place and gently lifted her owner to safety with the others. Inuyasha walked to join kagome, neither said anything as they met each others gaze, Kagome's were filled with determination and a bit of sorrow, and Inuyasha's held concern and anger. They turned to face Naraku, who was watching them without any emotion at all on his face, only waiting for the next move.  
  
At that moment, inuyasha and Kagome's minds were flowing with memories of what had led them here, all the battles, all the loses, and the pain and suffering. Now they stood alone, facing their strongest enemy. They both knew it would be a hard battle, but neither were scared, they're hatred and need for revenge getting the better of them. On the other hand, Naraku had one thing one his mind, the jewel, and he wasn't going to let anything stop him from reaching his goal, nothing at all. He had waited for inuyasha and co. to gather the rest of the shards, making his acquiring them easier. And now that the miko had all, including the wolf princes and Kohaku's, it was time to take them.  
  
Kagome was ready, she had never felt so ready in her life. Although she knew that one side was going to lose, she wasn't afraid of death anymore. She turned to look at inuyasha, to make sure that he was ready to do this also. Inuyasha's eyes now seemed to be in a far away place, but he felt Kagome's gaze, and looked up to her. He saw the question in her eyes, making sure that he was prepared to do this. In response, he nodded his head to her, and then reached out to take her hand in his. She smiled without looking down, and squeezed back.  
  
Naraku was sick of watching them, it disgusted him. 'How dare they act so calm, especially that woman.' He lunged out towards them, unleashing his spikes at them. Inuyasha raised his sword in the other hand, his left still gripping kagome, and he slashed through most of them with one swipe, the rest hitting another one of Kagome's barriers. Naraku them let loose his tentacles which were now dripping in poison. Inuyasha, letting go of kagome, jumped into the air to meet them. He sliced one by one, the poison splashing onto his skin, and he screamed in pain when it got in his eyes "Dammit!"  
  
"kukuku, the poison will render you blind in only a few minutes inuyasha. I'll let you enjoy the last seconds of sight, with the image of me slicing your woman in half!"  
  
Inuyasha tried to find Naraku frantically. But his vision was blurring, and no matter how much he rubbed them, he couldn't see anything clearly. "Kagome! Where are you?!"  
  
"inuyasha!" he spun around, looking in the direction of her voice. He could barely make out her image, but he saw her standing in a defensive position. Then he noticed the figure of Naraku positioned only a few meters infront of her. "Kagome!"  
  
Then he watched as best he could, as Naraku attacked kagome directly. He came at her, and she dispelled another one of her barriers. But to her horror, Naraku penetrated it with ease, his own black shield sizzling as it conflicted with the pure aura.  
  
Kagome didn't know what to do, his power was stronger than hers now. 'How can that be? He wasn't able to do this before! Nothing so evil can resist a miko's energy such as mine!...he was putting on a show, leading us along until we gathered the jewels, to lure us into a false sense of security! That bastard'  
  
Naraku laughed insidiously, "by the look in your eyes miko, it seems that you are surprised that I am able to stand so close to you."  
  
"I'm never surprised by you Naraku, you're full of lies and deceit, making you very predictable." Naraku's face spoiled when he heard her words of defiance and disrespect. "for someone that's about to die, you sure are a cocky little wench, aren't you?"  
  
"Whoever said I was going to die? Now look who's the cocky one Naraku." Naraku raised his arm, and slammed it into the side of her head, throwing her to the ground. She shrieked in pain and surprise, and rolled a few times when she hit the ground from the force of the impact.  
  
"Kagome!" inuyasha was fighting to keep his eyes focused, he knew if he was a human though, that his eyes would have probably dissolved by now, but his youkai blood was fighting the poison the best it could. He ran towards her, only to be thrown back by Naraku. "I'm having fun with her, do not interfere."  
  
"Naraku you bastard, leave her alone!"  
  
"And why should I inuyasha? This little wench holds the shikon no tama, I have every right to exercise my wrath towards her. It is a healthy desire among monsters, too bad you never learned to enjoy it, kukuku."  
  
Kagome was lying in the dirt, slipping in and out of the realm of consciousness. She was hurt badly; the wound to her head had no doubt given her a horrible concussion, so she knew she couldn't fall asleep. But it was too hard for her, she heard two voices arguing, but they were muffled, almost like she was buried deep in the ground. She was about to welcome the comfort of sleep, giving into the waves of immense pain when something happened.  
  
Suddenly, kagome started to glow in a violent white light. Naraku's barrier shattered, and he was assaulted by the intense beam, and was hurled a good hundred feet away, slamming into some rocks. Inuyasha though, stood unaffected by the power, but to his amazement, his sight was restored. Although he had his sight, he couldn't see what was causing the light. But at the source of the light, was the half of the jewel that kagome wore around her neck. It was reacting to its owners helplessness, and her unconscious will to preserve herself and inuyasha. Without kagome even knowing it, the jewel started to sink itself into the flesh of Kagome's chest that it rested on. Kagome body began to lift off the ground from the newfound power that was rushing and taking over her body.  
  
When the light subsided, inuyasha saw kagome standing, eyes closed, and still resonating with white light. "ka, kagome?" she came out of her daze, and looked down at her hands, then rested them on her chest, searching for the jewel. "inuyasha? The jewel...where did it go? I can feel it, but I cant see it." then her eyes went wide when she felt another presence...within her? 'the jewel's inside of me again? But why?' a little voice answered her. 'Lady Kagome, protector of the shikon no tama, I bestow you with the power of these four souls; to protect yourself and the ones you love. You cannot give up; you have a destiny that needs to be fulfilled. You were given a second chance when you returned to this time. You might not get a third, so you must awaken all your strength and power; if you use these with the will to survive and protect the ones you love, you will be victorious. It all lies in your hands now Lady Kagome, you are a powerful miko, have faith.' "miko, Midoriko?" she smiled in acknowledgment, "arigatou, Lady Midoriko"  
  
"Midoriko? The warrior priestess that formed the jewel? She was talking with kagome? She must be the reason why she became this strong." Inuyasha wondered aloud. Kirara's ears perking up at the sound of the name, and she was calmed at the thought of her old master helping them. She had never had more faith in anyone besides Midoriko, but if she had to choose, she would say the kagome would be next on that list, although she felt unfaithful to Sango for thinking so.  
  
Kagome looked down at her hands again, still shocked by the feeling of the vast amounts of energy she now had control of. She looked over at inuyasha, who had his eyes so wide, she swore they would fall out. She smiled to him reassuringly, and he only stared. He could feel the power radiating off of her, and it was starting to scare him.  
  
Naraku was also frightened, he had never been so easily knocked to the ground before, not by a woman for that matter. 'she has to go, I cannot allow her to live much longer, and risk her getting use to her powers. But how can I? I cannot get close enough to her. Damn her, I need to kill her if I want to get the jewel.' Then I small smile tugged at the edges of his mouth, as the comforting image of him digging his whole hand through the girls chest, and drawing out the shikon no kikara came to mind. 'this shall be fun after all.'  
  
Kagome though, was suddenly overcome by the increase of unnatural power momentarily, and as she became dizzy, she fell to her knees. Inuyasha was about to run to her, but Naraku, never being one to pass up an opportunity such as this, got to her first. In a flash, he had his tentacles around her neck, slamming her into a nearby tree. A small mirror appeared in the center of his chest, and it began to shine. The black light wound itself around her waist, neck, and wrists, binding her. Her eyes were now wide in shock, not liking being caught of guard. She struggled to move, but found that she couldn't even blink. 'I repressing spell! No! I cant move, and I cant summon my power, he must have used Kanna's mirror to increase the strength of the spell, or I would easily be able to break free. Inuyasha! Help!'  
  
"kagome! Get your fucking hands off of her you dirty bastard! What did you do to her?" Inuyasha rushed at Naraku, who was smiling at his handiwork, always glad to win the upper-hand. He looked at the, once again enraged inu- hanyou rush him. He drove one of his tentacles through his left shoulder, rewarded by his sounds of agony.  
  
"fool. When will you learn that you have no chance of beating me? This woman was more of a threat than yourself, I have no use for you. I will kill your woman, and take the jewel. But I think I shall kill you first now, you are beginning to aggravate me, inuyasha, and the more I look at her, the more she reminds me of that bitch Kikyou." He thrust out two more limbs, one going through his chest, and the other through his upper leg.  
  
'INUYASHA! I cant help him...inuyasha, please survive...' although she was unable to move, tears began to flow from her eyes as she watched the one she loved be mutilated by the enemy. 'Midoriko, thank you for the effort, but I fear that I cannot do this.' She was answered by silence, the voices gone.  
  
Inuyasha winced in pain, and coughed up a little blood. With the only strength he could muster through the pain, he raised his claw, and sliced away from Naraku's hold, falling to the ground. When he landed, his knees buckled, the pain too much to even allow him to stand. Naraku laughed again as he threw spikes at him. Inuyasha moved his sword infront of him, using it as a shield. It reflected a few of them, but some evaded the barrier, catching him in the shoulders and arms.  
  
Kagome continued to watch, wanting so much to be able to close her eyes, to be able to screen her eyes from the horrifying scene infront of her, she was sure she would lose inuyasha. It was hopeless now, she couldn't move, and inuyasha was badly wounded. She would be killed after him, but she would welcome it after this, she wouldn't want to live with this, these images would be forever engraved in her mind. As she heard inuyasha scream in pain again, her heart began to rip in two. ' I need to help him! I cant let him die like this!' she continued to scream inwardly, feeling the heat raise in her numb body, begging for it to move. As Naraku approached inuyasha with a speed that could only be meant for the final blow, she felt like she'd explode. Then, her screams suddenly exited her mouth, "INUYASHA!" and her hands broke free.  
  
Naraku stopped to look at her, 'how could she break free? Kami himself wouldn't have been able to overpower that spell! Damn her to the seven depths of hell!' inuyasha looked through one half closed eye when he heard her scream, and watched as she rose her hands from the binding spell. "kagome, I knew you could do it," he whispered.  
  
Kagome didn't even give a moment to wonder at how she broke free, she raised her hand above her head, and concentrated her energy there. In a second, an object flashed above her palm, energy solidifying into what looked like a bow. She drew it down infront of her, and placed her right hand at the string, and in another flash, a bolt of power formed, and she let it fly. It blazed through the barrier that had been around the tree, and headed straight for Naraku, who was paralyzed in fear.  
  
The 'arrow' hit its mark, hitting Naraku where his heart would have been, if he had one. The energy blowing his body to pieces, scattering them over the clearing. Kagome sighed in relief as the spell vanished and she fell to the ground, landing on her hands and knees. 'I did it! Naraku is gone! And inuyasha and I are still alive, the battle is won. Finally, its all over.' She looked up, remembering what else she had to do when she sensed the jewel near her. She crawled towards it, finding it in a chunk of Naraku's mauled flesh. She pulled it out, 'he put it in his own body for once, I guess he was really determined to get the rest of it this time.' She then picked herself up, and began to walk over towards inuyasha.  
  
"inuyasha? Inuyasha, wake up." Inuyasha felt someone rocking him gently, and he looked up to see Kagome's happy eyes. "kagome? What happened, where's Naraku?" he asked, his teeth slightly gritted with pain as he tried to sit up. "he's gone, inuyasha, he's gone. I destroyed him, and look what we won!" she held out the other half of the jewel to him, and his eyes went wide. "its time to decide what we are to do with it now...the other halves in my body again, so we either rejoin it together within me...or we use it."  
  
Inuyasha's mind was racing, 'us it? I could fulfill my wish now that we have it, I can become full youkai! But what would kagome say? She said that there was no reason to become youkai, that she liked me fine the way I was.'  
  
"you do...what you think is right kagome, I have faith in your judgment. After all, you are the shikon no tama's keeper." Inuyasha said in a low voice. Kagome's eyes went wide, "nani, kagome. Why are you looking at me like that?" inuyasha asked raising an eyebrow. "nothing inuyasha, that's just the most mature thing, and unselfish thing I've ever heard you say." She threw herself at him, and kissed him on the cheek and hugged him tight. He embraced her thankfully, not because of what was just said, but because he was relieved that she was okay, that they had both survived the trauma, and nothing would disrupt them again. He pulled her away from him reluctantly, and stared into her eyes. He could see where she had been crying, and reached up with his thumb, and wiped away the wetness. She smiled at him, and he warmly smiled back. they stayed like that for only a few moments, but it felt like an eternity, both wished it would have been. Kagome released him, and inuyasha reluctantly did the same. "well, we had better get this over with, before I pass out as well."  
  
She stood up and took a step back. she stared at the half of the jewel in her hand, pondering her action. She then smiled, and placed it against her chest. Inuyasha watched as her chest began to glow, as the jewel sunk into her body. And once it did, her whole being flashed in a soft pink light as the jewel became complete again. Her eyes were closed, and she had a small smile on her face. But then all of a sudden, inuyasha felt a presence behind him, and turned to see something fly past his face, missing him and head towards kagome. He looked up and watched as it pierced into kagome chest, coming straight through the other side. Inuyasha attacked it in a hurry, not letting it get more than 5 feet away from kagome, blasting it apart with his windscar. Before he obliterated it, he noticed to his horror, that it had been the hand of Naraku, apparently the only part left over by Kagome's attack. In its hand was held the complete shikon no tama. He picked it up, and then turned around to look at kagome. She was still standing, but she had a gaping hole through her, and he could see her clutching at her chest on the other side of the wound. "kagome..."  
  
And she silently began to fall to the ground, "inu...yasha..."  
  
Shizuka: ahh!! Sutekis so evil for ending it here! How could you?!  
  
Suteki: evil grin. Actually, I'm sorry, if I hadn't ended it here, than the chapter would have been way too long. I'll write the rest soon. But I wanted to thank all those that have reviewed so far, including both viewers at mediaminer and at fanfiction.net.  
  
Shizuka: don't be mad at me guys, it wasn't my idea. But like I said before, she has some good ideas, and the best is yet to come!  
  
Suteki: damn straight! Alright, next chapter: kagome is dying in Inuyasha's arms, can he save her? Will she let herself be saved? And what role will the shikon no tama play in all this?  
  
Shizuka: I hate it when she asks questions like that, like she expects you to answer them, lol. but, if these questions intrigue you, read the next freakin' chapter! Thank you and come again! =) 


	9. One Destiny Ended, Another Realized

Disclaimer: I'm tired of trying to say something original up here, so I'll put it plain and simple from now on: I DON'T OWN INUYASHA...just rub it in why don't 'cha?  
  
Suteki: I'm sorry for the cliff hanger, and I'm sorry to keep you waiting for the next chapter, but here it is, finally.  
  
Shizuka: this is the part of the story I've been waiting for her to write  
  
Suteki: yep, this is the single idea that made me write the story, where it goes from here, I'm not sure. But it will continue!  
  
Chapter 8: One Destiny Ended, a New One Realized  
  
The scene seemed to play in slow motion in Inuyasha's mind, his heart stopping. Kagome fell slowly to the ground, her body dripping in blood. He rushed to her before her head would hit the ground, and looked her over. It was bad, she had a gaping hole through her chest, and she had no chance what-so-ever of surviving, she had already lost too much blood.  
  
Kagome had her eyes closed in pain, and her breathing sounded painful and full of fluid. She opened her eyes to stare into Inuyasha's fear-stricken ones. "Kagome! No! Please, you cant die, please don't!"  
  
"Inuyasha...its alright...I fulfilled my destiny...I have purified the jewel, and it is safe again...I only have one more thing to make it complete..."  
  
"Kagome, no...don't talk like that, don't give up! You cant leave me!" his eyes were beginning to sting with tears, and he had to fight to keep them back. 'No! I cant lose her! Not now, not after everything...I never even got a chance to tell her that...I loved her...no! Its all my fault, I should have sensed it before it hit her!...'  
  
"Inuyasha...I will not leave you, without giving you something in return..."  
  
"In return for what? What could you possibly give me? Have hope, that's all I ask, you must live!" "Inuyasha, you must accept this, in order for my destiny to be fulfilled." 'my destiny didn't consist of only protecting the shikon jewel...I realize now, that I was sent here to make him happy again. To fix what was done to his life, to give some sort of consolation for his suffering...I can still do both.'  
  
She moved her hand to rest on his, and she laced in between his fingers, and laid her palm against the shikon no tama, while he held it in his own palm as well. He looked down at it questioningly.  
  
"I want you to use the jewel to become a full youkai...that is my gift to you. For all the times you were there for me, the least I can do is fulfill your wish." She smiled weakly, and then winced and screeched as a wave of pain rushed over her, and she became dizzy. "Please, inuyasha...I want you to be happy, I love you."  
  
"Kagome..." he was cut short as the jewel began to glow again, and he panicked, knowing that she was going to carry out the wish. He looked down at her face, that was still smiling at him, her eyes overflowing with silent tears. "goodbye...inuyasha..." she sighed, and closed her eyes...and with that, she was gone.  
  
Her last thought was this, 'Please grant me this wish. I wish, that this inu hanyou, were to be transformed into a full inu youkai, capable of controlling himself...and for him to be forever happy and to find a true love'. Then the jewel started to react with more power.  
  
"NO! KAGOME! You cant leave me! I...I love you!" and he lowered himself to her face as his own tears now dripped onto her lifeless cheeks, and kissed her like he had wanted to for so long, 'YOU MUST LIVE KAGOME! I WONT LET YOU DIE LIKE THIS!!!'  
  
Then the jewel reached its peak in power, and the light surrounded the two of them. Inuyasha felt a rush of energy flow through his body. The power had such a familiar feeling to it...'kagome!' and that was the last thought that went through his head before he passed out from the fluxuations of power that he felt in his body.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A few moments later, the light dimmed, and the two bodies remained motionless on the ground. one of them began to stir, and looked at the other in confusion.  
  
"inu...inuyasha?" kagome asked in utter confusion. 'was it a dream? I thought I was dying, the pain...I don't feel any pain anymore.' She looked down at herself where the wound had been, and she was covered in blood. Her clothing was ripped where she had been injured, but there was no longer any signs of a former wound.  
  
Inuyasha began to stir, but was afraid to open his eyes. He knew that she was gone now, and there was no longer any reason for him to live. He wanted to lay there with his eyes closed until kagome came back to take him with her in death. That is, until he heard something very unsettling. "inuyasha? What's going on?" he heard fear and confusion in her voice.  
  
Inuyasha's head immediately jolted up. He stared at kagome in disbelief, mouth gaping open. He embraced her with all his might, as if he were to let go, she would disappear again; either that or he would wake up. "kagome...you're...you're alive? But how??" Kagome hugged him back with just as much strength, it actually hurt inuyasha a bit, but he didn't care at the moment. All he knew was that he was holding kagome again, and she wasn't dying anymore. "I don't know inuyasha, all I remember was making the wish on the jewel for you to become youkai...and then it was all dark."  
  
He pulled her away reluctantly, and stared into her eyes. 'her eyes...something's different about them...they're a light purple now, like when she uses her powers; and is that, silver in them?' He then looked more attentively than before. His eyes went wide again, and kagome began to feel uncomfortable under his gaze, and almost scared. "What-what is it inuyasha? Why are you looking at me like that?"  
  
"Kagome...you've changed...". It was true, she had changed drastically. Her hair was now a dark metallic chrome, it looked silver, but black at the same time. Her ears were slightly pointed, he could see the tips of fangs protruding from between her lips...and she had face markings, that reminded him of someone. 'Sesshoumaru?' they were almost identical to his brothers, a light purple, almost pink. He reached up and brushed away her bangs, and sure enough, he found what he was looking for, the marking of a crescent moon. But hers was slightly different, there was what looked like an arrow piercing the moon.  
  
She reached up to cup his face in her hand to get him to stop looking at her so strangely, and inuyasha winced in pain. Kagome looked at her hand, and she had cut him some how. She pulled her hand away slowly, still staring at her fingers. 'claws! Where the hell did these come from?! Oh Kami, what happened to me?'  
  
"Inuyasha, I'm scared, what's going on?" she questioned him, tears falling from her eyes. Inuyasha just stared into her eyes now, 'they're even more beautiful than before...' "Inuyasha!"  
  
"Nani? Gomen...I don't know kagome...but from your appearance, and your altered scent...id say that you've become an inu youkai somehow..."  
  
"a what!? How can that be! Wait...inuyasha...what did you do, after  
I...died?"  
  
He blushed a little at the thought of kissing her came to mind, "well, I...I did...uh..." he didn't get a chance to finish thinking of what to say. "Did you make another wish?" she asked narrowing one of her eyes at him, and raising her eyebrow.  
  
"I may have, but I thought the jewel only granted one?" Kagome sat, still shaking slightly, in deep thought. "That is true...but...if another wish is made at the same time, with great will, and ones energy is used, than the other can be overridden."  
  
"I willed you to live, that's all. I never willed for you to become that!" he grabbed her hand and indicated the claw that was tainted in his blood. "Suppose...that we both shared equal emotion...than the two could have both been formed into one. Your will for me to live, merged with the wish for you to become youkai. The jewel saw the wish I made, as a solution to the one you made. Thus, we have this outcome."  
  
Inuyasha was still with shock. He reached for her again, and flushed her body against his. "I'm so sorry kagome, I didn't mean for this to happen to you. I'm so sorry. I'll understand it if you hated me for this." He said softly. Kagome started crying again, she didn't know what to do. She could almost feel the guilt in Inuyasha's voice. 'is it really that horrible? Do I look like a monster now? How am I going to live like this? Will the others be afraid of me?'  
  
Inuyasha was petting the back of her head, a couple of tears falling from his eyes. 'She's still here though, she's alive, and that's all that matters, right? No, inuyasha you baka. You ruined her life now, she never wanted to become one of your kind.' They stayed like that for a long time, both lost in their own thoughts. Inuyasha was scolding himself for letting this happen to kagome, and kagome still trying to get it to all make sense in her head.  
  
Soon enough though, she had stressed herself to sleep on Inuyasha's shoulder. He picked her up, still with a disheartened look on his features. He carried her over to where Kirara was laying with Sango, Miroku, and a passed out shippou. He motioned for the neko to follow with the others. It eyed the creature on his shoulder wearily, but them proceeded to pick up the three companions, and place them on her back. Inuyasha sped off, kagome in hand and Kirara at tail. Whatever he was going to do, he'd have to decide when they got back.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ After traveling the rest of the day nonstop, they reached their home late that night.  
  
Inside the hut, Sango, Miroku, and kagome were all laid out on mats on the floor with a blanket over them. Kirara was huddled next to her owner in her small form, and shippou was curled up next to her. The small kit never fully woke up, so didn't notice the difference in his adopted mother, which inuyasha was thankful for. He didn't want to have to deal with the child's grief right now, he was still getting over his own. He was still covered in blood from his wounds, which he hadn't bothered to bandage at all. He was knelt beside kagome, holding one of her hands in his, and using the other to brush her check repetitively. She was really very beautiful, of course she was always beautiful, but now she looked like a goddess, she seemed to be glowing. 'Kagome, what will we do?' as if she had heard his thoughts, she began to stir. He watched as she slowly flickered open her eyelids, to meet his eyes.  
  
He tried to smile down at her, although it didn't work when he saw the look in her eyes. She stared at him emotionless, then looked down at her hand again to confirm the nightmares she had been having. Sure enough, claws adorned the ends of each of her finger tips; and as her sleeve fell down her arm, she noticed for the first time light purple streaks wrapping around her lower arms to her wrists. Her face remained indifferent, but inuyasha frowned, knowing how she must have felt just then. "Inuyasha?" she said, still staring down at her hands. "yes, kagome?" he said, almost scared of what she was going to say next. "Inuyasha. Why is it that I sense that you're scared of me? I know you are, is it because of what I've become?"  
  
Inuyasha caught his breath in his throat; 'she can already recognize strong emotions through her new sense of smell.' "I'm only frightened of what you think of me now, because of what I made you. There's no reason for me to fear what you are though. I wish you could see how you look actually; you're even more beautiful than you were before. Not that you weren't pretty then, I mean!" he started to panic, not wanting to upset her. Kagome smiled, "truly inuyasha? You think I'm beautiful?" inuyasha blushed, and she giggled.  
  
Kagome sat up, and looked over inuyasha, she hadn't noticed until now that he was still soaked with blood. She opened his haori, and gasped when she saw that his wounds were still opened and exposed. His body had already started healing them, but they were still pretty bad, the bleeding hadn't even stopped yet.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Kagome proceeded to dress Inuyasha's wounds, and then moved on to Sango and Miroku, and fixed what she could without waking them. Now she was outside, staring up at the stars, just thinking. She had told inuyasha that she wanted to be alone for a while, but could sense that he was in a nearby tree, still watching her. She had noticed that she could now sense many things that she never noticed before. She smelt all kinds of things, like the forming dew on the grass, the water, and every animal that was around her. She could hear just about everything around her, which was a little unsettling, she felt cramped. 'This is what inuyasha goes through all the time? No wonder he's always so tense' she thought to herself. As she continued to stare up at the starry sky, she smiled. 'Maybe this wont be so bad! Inuyasha already said that I was beautiful this way, so I know that I'm not scary looking at least. And now I'm even stronger than before, at least I think I am, I haven't really tried anything to test my new powers...' she spotted a shooting star, and then sat up more, 'oh! I have to think of a wish...I wish that I can live happily like this, like nothing really happened,' and she smiled to herself again.  
  
"Inuyasha. I know you're watching me. You can come out now, I wont bite." She giggled, running her tongue over her new canines. Inuyasha grunted, and leapt out of the tree to stand next to her. "kagome I-" he was cut short when kagome stood up infront of him, and put her finger to his lips, "shhh. Inuyasha, don't worry about it, I'm fine." Inuyasha blinked in confusion, "you're, you're not mad? You're not unhappy with what's happened?" kagome just smiled, "no inuyasha. I understand why this happened, and I'm happy it did. You saved my life inuyasha, how could I ever be mad at you for that?"  
  
Inuyasha smiled, then grabbed her around the waist, and pulled her close to him. "Kagome, I'm so glad that you're not upset. You have no idea how happy I am that you're still alive...don't ever do that to me again." Kagome nuzzled her head in the crook of Inuyasha's neck and shoulder, hands between her chest and Inuyasha's. She clutched his coat, and smiled to herself. She pulled away to look into his eye; she was happy to see that they looked happy now, instead of distressed. 'Maybe I can still fulfill the rest of my destiny after all.' "arigatou, inuyasha." Before he could reply, kagome leaned forward, and pressed her lips against his, in a gentle kiss. Inuyasha's eyes were wide only for a moment, then he leaned into her, and kissed her back, releasing all his anxiety and stress into it. He felt as if she was draining the worry from him, and replacing it with hope.  
  
All too soon, kagome pulled away, looking into his eyes again, which were a tad bit happier than before, she smiled inwardly and outwardly as well. She began to open her mouth to say something, but inuyasha quickly covered her lips with his finger. "No kagome, I want to say it first. Before any more interruptions..." kagome looked up at him, a quizzical look on her face. He moved his hand to cup the side of her face, "I love you...kagome." She stared at him, mouth open and eyes wide. She quickly changed it into a smile, and her eyes welled up. "oh, inuyasha!" she threw herself at him, and kissed him again. As her eyes squinted tight, a single happy tear rolled down the side of her cheek. 'I love you too, inuyasha'...  
  
Suteki: auuhhhhh, how cute! So! What you think about Kagome's transformation?! Sorry its so short though. PLEASE REVIEW! All of your reviews so far have made me sooo happy! DOMO ARIGATOU!  
  
Shizuka: bet you guys didn't see that one coming aye?  
  
Suteki: don't worry, this isn't the climax either  
  
Shizuka opens fortune cookie she got at P. F. Changs...  
  
Suteki: aye, what that say?  
  
Shizuka: 'more surprises await you in your near future'...cool!  
  
Kouga runs in to the room and over to Shizuka and kisses her  
  
Kouga: you're my new woman. Surprise!  
  
He runs off again  
  
SILENCE  
  
Suteki: NEXT CHAPTER: the group finds out about kagome, kagome realizes something very depressing...and that's all I can tell you right now. You'll just have to wait and see! lol 


	10. Family

Disclaimer: I don't own inuyasha  
  
Suteki: alright, after I typed that last chapter, I didn't really know where to go. The whole time I've been typing it was to get to kagome somehow turning youkai. I HATE how she's so weak in the story line, and thought she deserved better.  
  
Shizuka: you should have seen her! She was hysterical when she realized that she had no idea where the story was going from there. Lol  
  
Suteki: well, I hate to admit it. but Shizuka helped me a lot to get it back on track. So I think you'll all be very happy with all the original things we've thrown in here!!  
  
Shizuka: so why don't you shut up and let them read it?!  
  
Suteki growls...then sweat drops  
  
Suteki: fine  
  
Chapter 9: Family  
  
The group sat outside, deciding it was a nice night to sleep under the stars like old times. Sango, Miroku, and inuyasha had already fallen asleep, and it was only kagome and shippou that stayed awake to watch the fire. Kagome and shippou were wrapped in a blanket since it was probably in the high 60s to low 70s outside.  
  
It had been four days since kagome transformed into a inu-youkai, and she was doing her best to adjust, as were the rest of them. Sango had cried hysterically when she saw kagome, although the fever could have had a lot to do with it. Miroku didn't saw anything, only gawked in amazement, which inuyasha quickly ended. Shippou....shippou couldn't have been more excited, "now you're even more like my mommy! Yay!!" was basically all he was able to say, the grin never leaving his face for about 3 days straight.  
  
Kagome always kept a smile on her face, but inside she felt like she was falling apart. It wasn't that she was unhappy about what she was, to tell you the truth, she was a bit excited about the whole thing. But, she didn't feel well, she always felt light headed, and heavy. Inuyasha had noticed that she acted strangely when she wasn't around the others, but she just told him that she was tired, and not to worry. But of course, being the possessive hanyou that he is, he never left her side and kept his eye on her at every moment.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"kagome okasan?" shippou asked half asleep, while he sat in Kagome's lap as she was petting him.  
  
"what is it shippou?"  
  
"I want some chocolate! When are you going to go back to you're time to get me more candy??" he begged as he sat up to look at kagome. He quickly frowned when he saw an almost frightened look on her face. "ok-okasan?" kagome slowly picked him up, and then set him back on the ground. She turned around, and then bolted off into the woods faster than he had ever seen inuyasha run before.  
  
Inuyasha had been watching the snuggling miko and kit from under his bangs as he pretended to sleep in an overhanging tree. He could tell though, by the smiles that kagome would throw in his direction, that she knew that he was really awake. He watched in utter confusion as he heard her heart beat quicken, and breathing cease for a moment, and then she ran away into the forest.  
  
He leaped from his perch, and chased after her. He was having a lot of trouble catching up to her, and he quickly became frustrated, not used to being left in the dust. He ran, slashing his way through brush and trees until he came out into the clearing that held the Bone Eaters well. The first things his eyes searched for was the well, and sure enough, there she was. She was on the ground with her head in her arms which were resting on the lip of the well. "What's wrong kagome? Why'd you run off like that?? Why'd you come here?" he said as he approached her slowly. Kagome's head shot up and she looked at him, her eyes red and puffy. "inu-inu..." she couldn't even speak through her choking sobs. Instead she just flung her body into his, burying her head in his chest, fists tightly gripping his coat. He was barely able to keep his balance through the force of the impact, but when he regained his footing, he embraced her tightly. "Its okay kagome. Stop crying, I hate it when I see you cry. What's wrong?!" she was trying to calm herself down, and thanks to inuyasha, she was getting close to control. She hiccupped a few times, the repercussions of her violent sobs, and then tried her vocal cords again. "oh inuyasha hic what am I hic going to do?" "About what kagome? You're not making any sense." He said a bit frustrated, and she started to cry again. "No kagome, I didn't mean to say it like that. Please, help me, help you." She started to calm down again, "I can never see them again! Never! Mother, Souta, Jii-chan! You're all gone, forever..." she practically screamed, and started to cry again, saying it out loud having an even worse impact on her. 'Her family! Of course, I almost forgot about that. The jewel was what allowed her to go back and forth, and without it she wouldn't be able to do that anymore. But I thought that she was able to travel to her time without it, why didn't she think of that?' "Kagome, cant you go back one last time without the jewel? I thought that was you're plan in the first place." Kagome looked up at him. "What, are you blind inuyasha?! I can't go back like this, I cant live in my time as a demon! And besides, I wouldn't be able to make it back here again. So it's either one or the other, and I cant choose between them." "why not kagome? They're your family, what's stopping you?" "My god inuyasha! You're almost as naïve as Hojou-kun! I can't choose because I have my own family here, I cant just up and abandon shippou. I can't just leave YOU inuyasha! I can't give up what I have with you, you mean too much to me, everyone does." She said as she pounded on his chest. 'Me? She won't leave because of me? Why do I mean so much to her...does she really care for me that much? That she would leave her former life to stay with me?' inuyasha couldn't help but smile inside, although he felt bad for being so selfish. 'look at what this is doing to her you baka, you have to help her make the RIGHT choice, not the one that will make YOU happy...'  
  
"I wish I had been able to say a REAL goodbye to them all, not the fake one I parted with. I said farewell, still giving them the hope that I would return, but now...but now they will never hear from me, never find out what happened to me. Mamma will probably think that I was brutally killed in the battle, its going to rip her heart out. I cant leave her like that, I cant leave ANY of them not knowing whether I was alive of dead. Inuyasha...I don't know what I'm going to do...I have to make a decision, and now."  
  
"kagome..." he didn't know what to say to that, he didn't know how he could help her with such a decision. But he soon found that he wouldn't have too. Kagome, seeing the worry and confusion in Inuyasha's eyes, realized that he didn't know how to handle the situation at all. "inuyasha, if you don't mind, id like to be alone for a while. I need to think this over and find the answer myself. Please forgive me, I'll be back soon."  
  
She smiled at him warmly, and then pulled out of his embrace. He reached towards her still, not liking the sound in her voice. 'where is she going?' He watched as she began to glow in a blue light, which grew brighter, and then she vanished into thin air. "kagome? Kagome!!" he jumped forward to where she had once stood, 'where'd she learn that little trick?' he thought bewildered. 'I hope she'll be okay. I know that she's strong, but no one is immune to this kind of torture.'  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
For three days, kagome wandered the lands. She had used a concealing spell on inuyasha that day, hiding any trace of her from him, so that he wouldn't have any way to follow her. She was a blur on the landscape, she moved with such speed that only the keenest of youkai would have been able to see her, although all could feel the power that was radiating off of her. She had stopped crying long ago, now only lost in her thoughts. She would somehow always wind up at the places of her past. Sango's destroyed and abandoned village, various hot springs she had enjoyed with her friends, the field she encountered the young kit shippou, lost battle fields, villages they had stayed in, fields they had picnicked on, the clearings she had spent nights staring at the stars, the many trees she had looked into, staring at her hanyou above.  
  
But last....she found herself on a rolling hilltop that was covered in grass, mosses, and beautiful wild flowers. 'Why does this place feel so special? I can feel lingering positive vibrations in this land.' She smiled as warm memories returned to her. Images of a group of misfits came flooding into her memory. There was a fox child, a cursed monk, a female demon slayer, an inu hanyou, all of which were orphans...except one traveler, the lone time- traveling miko. It wasn't till that moment that she realized just how strange of a group that they must have appeared to be. But, they all had something in common that held them together, giving them a unique bond that could never be broken...they were all lost, and shared the same pains.  
  
She remembered that this was the place her friends had surprised her with a 'party' ("Warring States Era" style) for her 16th birthday. She placed her hands over her heart, and continued to smile as a single tear streamed its way down her face. THIS was her family now, THESE were the people she had dedicated her life to. She had accepted these individuals as her kin, and she realized that she needed them as much as they needed her. She felt that she belonged here, she fit better than she did in her time she noticed...this was her home.  
  
With her new, confirmed, revelation. She focused her power strongly, and in a moment vanished again, this time transporting herself close to her destination. 'I'm coming home...for once, I'm coming home to stay...'  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
inuyasha had been doing nothing but pacing back and forth in the hut for the past couple of days. Miroku and Sango had almost given up on trying to get him to stop. He had quiet literally wore away the straw mat on the floor, and was now working a distinct rut into the earth below.  
  
"inuyasha...you have to at least eat something. Starving yourself will not prove helpful in bringing miss kagome back any sooner."  
  
"shut up monk! I'll do whatever the hell I want until she comes back! she's been gone for four days now, and its starting to piss me off!"  
  
"leave him alone Miroku, you know how he gets when he's worried about kagome."  
  
"I'm NOT worried about her"  
  
"Alright. You know how he gets when he misses her." Sango corrected herself with a small smile gracing her lips. Followed by Inuyasha's all-intelligent answer...  
  
"Feh!"  
  
Sango still wore bandages over her wounds, and a sling on her right arm. Miroku, was about in the same condition; although now he took pride in leaving both his wrists bare, indulging in the freedom that came with the loss of kazaana, the only sign that it was ever there, was an almost unnoticeable circular scar. Both of them sat in contentment, still adjusting to being able to relax for once. They stared into the fire pit, both with small content little smiles adorning their faces. Then they all felt a tremendous burst of power just outside the hut, wiping the smile clear off. They all jumped up, looking for the source of the power surge. Even inuyasha had one hand over the tetsusaiga, ready to attack. All was silent for a moment.  
  
"what, you guys planning on killing me?" came a soothing voice. They looked up to the doormat to see a woman standing half inside of the room. The fire made her hair glow, making it appear almost silver. The flames cast soft shadows on her face, and they almost couldn't recognize the female creature.  
  
"kagome?!" inuyasha yelled, having the advantage of smell over the rest. He ran over to her, dragging her the rest of the way into the small home, embracing her possessively.  
  
"kagome-Chan! I almost didn't recognize you. Where have you been? We've been so worried about you. I mean, just look what inuyasha did to the floor!" she said, pointed at the pit in the floor.  
  
Inuyasha still hadn't released her, and was just enjoying the feel of her in his arms, and inhaling her intoxicating scent. 'I wont let you leave me ever again! That was too stressful.'  
  
Kagome smiled warmly at all of them, and then noticed that shippou was beginning to stir from his slumber. He sniffed the air curiously before he opened eyes, when he caught Kagome's scent, he was up in a flash. He flew at her, lodging himself in between inuyasha and kagome. Inuyasha didn't really care, or didn't notice. He was smiling into the crook of her neck, his face pointed down towards shippou as he smiled happily.  
  
Sango giggled, and then leaned over to rummage through Kagome's things. She pulled out a Polaroid camera, and then winked at Miroku's curious look. The cute huddling threesome was suddenly interrupted by a bright flash, causing inuyasha to jump. He glared over at Sango who was pulling the piece of paper out of the strange contraption. Shippou ran over and settled next to the Taijiya, staring over her shoulder to watch the picture 'magically' appear. He smiled and started to giggle as it came into view. "okasan! Look, its us!"  
  
Kagome walked over to the two, and Sango handed her the, not-quite- developed-picture. Kagome's eyes went wide as she watched the picture form. Her mouth dropped open, and her hand smacked up to cover it. She gasped at what she saw. It was the first time she had seen herself in her new form. She smiled widely, happy with what she saw. 'wow...that's me? Ha! What a hotty!...no, you're a conceited little demon,' she argued with herself, and then giggled. She ruffled the kits orange hair. Then she turned her attention to inuyasha, who had one eyebrow raised, wanting to know what was so funny. Paranoid as usual, he assumed they were laughing about him, he never was too good with those picture things kagome seemed to be obsessed with. She giggled again, guessing at what he was thinking, and then walked over to him. She faced him, and then held the picture infront of his eyes.  
  
He looked at it, and for some strange reason that he couldn't explain, his heart swelled, and he started to blush. In the picture, kagome was smiling happily at the kit in her arms, who had a smile from pointy ear to pointy ear. And then there he was, also smiling, and eyes also down towards the kit. He held his breath for a moment, 'I don't even look like I belong in that picture. It looks fake, we all look so...happy.' He started to reach his hand towards it so he could hold it, but kagome snatched it away. "no inuyasha, I have a special plan for this picture. Sorry. We'll take another one later if you want, but I need this one." He looked up into her eyes a bit shocked, and confused again; but quickly caught himself, "keh, like I really want something like that anyways. It creeps me out. You SURE those things don't steal your soul?" he tried to change the subject. Kagome rolled her eyes, and smiled again, "no, inuyasha. They don't steal your soul. I told you a thousand times. "she leaned forward and pecked his nose playfully.  
  
"kagome-sama. May I ask as to where you were these past four days? Your sudden absence was a bit unsettling"  
  
kagome looked at the ground for a second, and then looked up to meet eyes with Miroku. "thinking is all Miroku, I'm sorry to have worried you all. Trying to figure out for myself where I belong."  
  
The others sat in silence, waiting for her to finish the sentence, but it never came. "and?..." they all said in unison. She only smiled back widely, tears threatening to fall again, but she held them back. She then turned around, and found her things. She pulled out some stationary paper, and a pen. Everyone watched as she did this, and then walked over to a low wooden table, and began to write something down. But no one asked, all deciding that since she didn't say anything, it was something personal. They all settled back around the fire, all except inuyasha. He stood, still staring at the beautiful inu youkai, and smiled to himself. 'I'm glad you came back to me, kagome. I hope you'll stay'  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Kagome stayed at the table for a long time, staring at the paper most of the time, until she finally wrote something down. Every once and a while she would crumple up the paper, and throw it into the fire, startling them from time to time. But when she was done, she set the pen down, and read it over and over to herself.  
  
She wiped away the tears on her face, and stood up. As she walked to the door, she turned and gave everyone a look that clearly said, 'don't follow me, I'll be back'. inuyasha nodded to her, and she turned and exited her home. She walked slowly into the forest. As she walked, she stared up at the stars through the breaks in tree branches. She smiled, knowing that those also connected her to the future. She knew that as she stared at the night sky, her family could see the same stars 500 years in the future, and it made her all the more comfortable with what she was going to do.  
  
She came upon her destination, and looked down at the old wooden well. Walking over to it, she sat on the lips and gazed into its depths. She swung her legs over, like she had all those times before, although this time, she wouldn't jump. For a few long moments she just stared, thinking about what was going on at the other end of the well. She could barely feel a presence close to her, and it felt as if it was in the well. She quickly shook the creeping images of her mother crying in the well house over the loss of her daughter.  
  
The miko/youkai held the small envelope in one hand, and looked at it while smiling. It read, "Family" in beautiful Japanese calligraphy, the last class her mother insisted she take in her senior year. She closed her eyes, and settled it close to her heart, then focused her energy, and the letter began to glow in a soft yet powerful blue light. She opened her eyes slowly, and then held it over the mouth of the well. Her shaking hand let it fall, and she watched as the magic of the well activated one last time, and the package disappeared in the brilliant lights of time.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
On the other side of the well, in modern Tokyo; a mother did indeed occupy the special well house, but she was not crying. As every night for the past year, she would sit on these steps, and wait for her daughter to return, thinking that she might somehow be able to protect her offspring as long as she was as close to her as possible. She smiled widely when she saw a glow come from the well. She ran to look inside, but was surprised that it wasn't kagome that had come through, but an object.  
  
She carefully made her way down the small ladder to the bottom of the wooden structure. She picked up the small envelope, and turned it over. Her heart stopped when she read the word that was in Kagome's handwriting. Her shaking hands slowly opened the letter and she pulled out the note. Tears quickly formed in her eyes when she read the words her only daughter was telling her.  
  
------------ NOTE  
  
Mama, Souta, Grandpa,  
  
If you're reading this, it means that you got worried about me and came to the well. I'm sorry for having worried you, but I'm okay. The battle with Naraku was won, and we all survived. There were only two casualties on our side, first Kouga. You know him, he's the wolf prince I told you about, the one that was in love with me. And then the second was Sango's little brother, Kohaku. Good news is that we were able to free him from Naraku's control before he died. Sango's okay, she's happy he was free when he passed on. Miroku's wind tunnel is gone, and he's pretty happy about that.  
  
Okay, you're probably wondering by now, why I'm not telling you all this in person. Well, there was a slight problem regarding the jewel, and to make a long story short, I'm no longer the human girl you last saw me as. I am now a dog youkai like inuyasha. In the state that I am in now, I cannot live in the future anymore. One, I wont look human, and two, my powers are needed here, and would only cause problems in the future.  
  
Please don't worry about me, I'm fine, and adjusting well. I thought long and hard about this, and I've come to my conclusion. I can only pass through the well one last time, and I wont be able to come back to the past. So, I've decided, to stay here. Please forgive me, it was hard to accept this myself. But, mother I'm sure you will understand. These people are my family now, and they need me. I know that we will always be together, and I will always be safe with them. I love them all very much, almost as much as I love you all.  
  
I hope you are not too upset with this, I love you all with all my heart, and I wish you all the best in life. Mother, you were the best mom any teenage girl could have wished for. You were always there when I needed you, and I can only hope that I will be as good a mom as you. I leave Souta and Jii-Chan to you now. Souta, you take care of yourself, you are the sweetest little brother in the world, and I love you very much, and I'm sorry for all the times I might have yelled at you. Didn't mean it, and just to let you know, yes, you can have my stereo. ; ) grandpa, take good care of the shrine, it is the only place that connects us to each others worlds. Whatever you do, don't let anyone tear it down, especially the god tree, thank you. Love you lots gramps.  
  
I can't say it enough, I love you. I will always regret that I wasn't there for all of you, I've been selfish. But this is the way it has to be, the way I've chosen. I know that you will all be happy, you have each other. I will always be with you in your hearts, I'm still apart of your family. Just think of this as, I've moved out of the house. There's still a chance I might 'visit', since I am a youkai now, I may live to see you all in the future. I'll try, I promise. In the meantime, I will never forget you, I'll think of you in all I do. I'll see you in my own family, so I know I'll never be too far from you. I give you my heart, and my best wishes. Take care always, and see you in the future.  
  
Love Always and Forever,  
  
Your Kagome  
  
You may be out of my sights, but you will never leave my heart.  
  
----------END NOTE  
  
Her mother smiled and wiped away the tearstains, as she began to understand what kagome had done, she was happy for her. Her daughter had found happiness, even if she had to be so far away to obtain it, she didn't care. As she turned to begin back up the ladder, something fell out of her hand. She looked down to see a photograph. She smiled as her tears returned as her eyes observed the gift from her daughter. She looked happier than she had ever seen her in her life, she knew this was right. She had found her own family to love, one that loved her with their whole hearts as well, and she knew that her daughter was in good hands. She had become a woman, and this was the route she had rightfully chosen. Her mother knew deep in her heart that she would most likely choose this road, but was partially scared for her daughter. But now that fear had been conquered by the joy and comfort her daughter had given her. "I love you kagome, you will always have my blessing."  
  
Suteki: so! Whatcha think? I cried when I read this over. Hope you like it. I've come up with a solid story plan for all that's to come after this, so it ain't gonna end all that soon.  
  
Shizuka: I feel so sorry for Kagome's mom, *sniffles*.  
  
Suteki: hey, I tried to break it easy to her, so don't get mad at me!  
  
A/N: next chapter...I cant really say what all I'm gonna fit into it, but it will have to do with Kagome's adjusting to her new powers, physically. I know she's been demon for a while, but there's been something going on inside of her that she wont be aware of until next chapter. Keh! And they thought it was all going to be sunshine and rainbows from here eh? 


	11. A Most Unexpected Visitor

Disclaimer: I don't own inuyasha!...BUT! I DO own any original characters in his story. So ha! I found a way around the system! Mwuahahahah! Ahem...  
  
Suteki: hey peoples. I'm glad you liked the last chapter, I was hoping to get some kind of response out of that one, glad it worked.  
  
Shizuka: keep your eyes open for new characters coming up soon!  
  
Suteki: oh yeah, that reminds me. If any one would like to see my own sketches of demon kagome, or the two upcoming characters, email me and I'll send them to you.  
  
Shizuka: we tried to get them up on mediaminer, but it didn't work for some reason. But, she's REALLY good! So think about it pwease. I've seen 'em, and they're pretty cool. You wont be disappointed!  
  
Suteki: if you don't want to bother going into my profile to get it, here's my current address: inu_luver@yahoo.com . arigatou!!  
  
Suteki: one last thing, I wanted to give a shout out to my 2 faithful readers at mediaminer.org. First off, essie! Thanks for keeping up with this, and for reviewing so often, I'm glad you like it! I know that she's already read this chapter, so might not read her own shout out, but I'll mention her again next chapt. And second, to hanyou_kagome, I'm glad you're so enthusiastic about all my stories, thanks for all 3 of your reviews, they made my day!  
  
And also to Kagome3007, who posted some very entertaining reviews, I know I mentioned you before, but didn't want to leave you out this time. =)  
  
And for my reviewers at ff.net, namely: Yumiki-Chan, The_Magician, Josie (Inuyashasmate), animefreak808, inukaglover132, and HeartAke. THANKS! I loved reading ALL of your reviews, and I'm sorry I didn't thank you all earlier, but, DOMO arigatou!  
  
(*your name here* if you reviewed! Lol)  
  
Chapter 10: A Most Unexpected Visitor  
  
As kagome made her way back to the hut, she continued to smile to herself. She could feel in her soul, that her mother was happy for something, and she thought she knew what. 'I'm glad you accept this mother.' As she continued to walk however, she was assaulted by another wave of dizziness, this one more powerful than the last ones. She fell to one knee, supporting her head in her hands.  
  
"What's wrong with me?" she worried out loud. "why's it getting worse? I thought for sure this would have passed by now, its been over a week." She stayed like that for a good five minutes, as the forest spun in circles around her. Her body started to heat up, and she shivered at the chills that rolled up and down her spine. "help...me..." she whispered into the dirt.  
  
Inuyasha stepped out side, not being able to help being worried about kagome. He wasn't going to follow her, but wanted to be the first to know when she returned. As he leaned against the walls of the hut, something caught his attention. He caught Kagome's scent not to far from the village, but something was mingled in it as well, but he couldn't tell what it was at first. It was very faint, so he took in a few more nose-fulls of air, 'fear! She's scared! Of what?' when the question popped into his mind, he flew into the forest in desperate search of her.  
  
'Could it be another demon? It couldn't be Naraku could it? I cant sense another presence anywhere in the area, what could she possibly be scared of?' he quickly caught site of her form. She was kneeling on the ground, her elbows holding her up as she rested her head between her forearms. "Kagome?" he voiced quietly as he approached her slowly.  
  
Kagome couldn't process much of anything, her head was heavy and it felt like she was falling and didn't know when she'd hit the ground. She didn't feel him approaching; it wasn't until she heard him voice her name the she knew he was standing above her. She tried to raise her head to look at him, but she couldn't move her neck at all. She started to sob in frustration, "inuyasha...help me..." she whispered again.  
  
He was quickly at her side, and he slowly pulled her over to sit in his lap. Her help limply fell backwards into his chest. There were beads of sweat forming at her brow, and her face was flushed. "Kagome, what's wrong with you? What happened?"  
  
She fought to open her eyes, and as she managed to, she focused onto his eyes. As she locked with his amber yes, she felt as if she were drawing strength from his worried orbs. She smiled as she felt the dizziness slowly subside, and her head lighten a little. "I don't know inuyasha, I'm sorry to have worried you. I think I'm just getting a little sick is all, must be the transformation along with the stress."  
  
"Are you sure? I mean, I know that your body is still getting used to the changes and all, but-" "Its okay, I'm fine now, just take me back to the hut, I'm tired." She interrupted as she started to sit up. He helped her stand as she held onto his shoulders. "Thank you inuyasha, I don't think I could have made it back without you. Its strange though, it simply disappeared so quickly." She leaned up and chastely planted a small kiss on his nose. He eyed her wearily, wondering also, how she recovered so fast. 'Must be her demon blood that healed her...' he told himself.  
  
He picked her up, and then leaped into the nearby Goshenboku. He rested his back in the arch of a branch and the trunk. He pulled her close into his embrace, and she curled up in his lap. She had fallen asleep as soon as she settled, and he stayed awake staring at the top of her head still with a worried look on his face. 'What's wrong kagome?'  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The others had fallen asleep the night before, all wondering where the two members of the group had gone. Upon sharing his theory of where the couple was, Miroku ended up with a rather large bump on the head. In the morning, they awoke to find that they still hadn't returned. Shippou was getting testy, and Sango was starting to worry.  
  
Back in the god tree, a young demoness was starting to stir. Kagome woke up surrounded by warmth. She snuggled closer into it when she felt a slight chill, and was greeted by a soft purr. 'Purring? Since when do sleeping bags purr?' her eyelids fluttered open, and she was met by anything but the warm oak walls of her hut. She was staring a good 50 feet down at the forest floor. She stiffened and then looked up when she felt the warmth tighten around her. She smiled when she saw Inuyasha's sleeping face. He looked so sweet and innocent when he slept, almost like a child. His lips were parted lightly, and his ears were twitching every once and a while. She couldn't resist, she reached up and rubbed one of his furry ears, and bit back a giggle when his chest rumbled with another purr. She leaned forward and kissed him gently on the lips. When she pulled away, she watched as his eyes fluttered open as well, and met hers. His mouth made a curious "o" as he tried to remember what was going on, and why he was purring. 'Purring? Oh crap, she didn't hear me purr did she?' as if reading his mind, "Inuyasha, is that purring that I hear?" "Purring?! Keh! Only neko's purr." He said defiantly, while a small blush crept onto his cheeks.  
  
"Oh really?" she asked in a slightly mischievous tone. She leaned forward again, only a hair's breadth from his face and stared into his eyes. He blinked a couple of times at her in confusion. Then his eyes widened as she lowered her head to the base of his neck and she began to nuzzle against him, and was...purring back? He closed his eyes and leaned into her, giving into his animal instincts, and nuzzled her back, while the vibrating in his chest mingled with her own.  
  
Just then, the couple both picked up a familiar scent, kagome smiled while inuyasha scowled. "Kagome! Okasan?!"  
  
"Up here shippou-Chan!!" she yelled from her perch in the tree. "There you are! I thought something happened to you, I was starting to get worried. Come down here please! I'm hungry!"  
  
Kagome continued to stare down at the ground, and then threw a questioning look up at inuyasha. He smiled, "feh, come on woman, you look like a little koneko stuck in a tree. You're a powerful inu youkai, don't tell me you're afraid of heights."  
  
"Inuyasha! I've never even dreamed of jumping down from this high up and living! You've got to be kidding me!"  
  
"You've gotta learn some time," he eyed her as he continued to smile smugly, looking as if he was enjoying her insecurity.  
  
Kagome didn't like being talked down to like a little girl, so she looked back down at the ground determinedly. She sucked in, held her breath, and then leaned forward a little, getting ready to ease down. Inuyasha, getting bored of watching her move so slowly, nudged her backside with one of his feet. She shrieked, and then fell the rest of the way off the branch with a "EEEP!"  
  
Inuyasha leaned over the limb to watch her falling. Her feet were always pointed at the ground, and her arms were above her head. Her hair whipped violently upward, and her clothing billowed in the air. She closed her eyes tight as she approached the ground, but was surprised when her feet came into contact with the ground, and all she did was softly bend her knees, and she was fine. She blinked in surprise, and then looked back up to inuyasha, smiling ear to ear. "ha! Told you I could do it!"  
  
"You did??"  
  
She glared at him, but quickly was reminded of Shippou's presence when he latched onto her leg. "That was amazing okasan! I didn't know you could do that! I thought I was going to have to kill inuyasha there for a second when I saw him push you." Kagome laughed down at him, and rubbed between his ears. "Come on, let's go eat."  
  
With that, she picked up the kitsune, and ran back towards camp, once again lavishing in her new powers, quite happy with herself.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When kagome and inuyasha had returned with shippou, Sango had been extremely relieved, and thus lectured kagome about leaving without telling anyone where she was going. Miroku on the other hand, sat in a corner, quietly smiling to himself, this didn't go unnoticed by the hanyou. "Oi monk, what are you smiling about?" inuyasha asked as he came to sit next to him. Miroku's smile grew, and his eyelids slanted at inuyasha, "So...how was it?" inuyasha continued to eye him, confused again. "How was what?" Miroku bit back a giggle, "how was she??" he emphasized the last word as he directed his gaze to kagome, who stood at the other side of the room. Inuyasha blushed a deep crimson, and then smacked the perverted Houshi in the back of the head, "none of your god-damned business. You had better shut your trap, and get all those filthy images out of your head." Miroku rubbed the back of his head, one eye shut in pain, while he smiled innocently, "why, I don't know what these images that you speak of, could possibly be my dear man." Inuyasha growled, and in a low tone, "the ones of kagome naked, fulfilling your sick fantasies. You know damn well that's what you're thinking." He whispered through clenched teeth. This earned a weary laugh from the monk, but that stopped as they both heard a small gasp and gulp from the far side of the hut. They both turned their heads, to see kagome, red as a tomato, glaring at the both of them. 'oh crap, forgot about the ultra-sensitive dog ears'  
  
The group went on to have breakfast, after kagome had given both boys they're punishment of cleaning the hut spotless, and then making they're own breakfast. The morning passed by slowly, as the group lounged around outside, enjoying the brisk air. Kagome and Sango were sitting outside in two lawn chairs (courtesy of kagome) and staring into the cloud-filled sky. "Hey, kagome-Chan." "Yeah?" "You think we should start our training now? You said you wanted to wait a few weeks, and I think now's a good time to start." "Training? You mean like combat training?" "Yeah, the boys and I were talking while you were gone last week, and we think that we figured out a good plan." "Okay, care to share it with me?" "Okay, inuyasha will be training your new demon powers of course, while Miroku helps with new incantations and such, while I'm your one-on-one battle instructor! Sounds exciting nay?"  
  
Kagome smiled widely, "I would love that Sango! It'll be nice to keep all our skills polished, even if we aren't fighting Naraku anymore."  
  
The two girls went to find inuyasha and Miroku. They found Miroku lying lazily under a tree, and inuyasha in some random tree. They talked about the battle plan, and decided that kagome needed to train her youkai powers first thing, so her and inuyasha made their way to an open field where they were free of distractions.  
  
"Alright kagome, now raise your claw up infront of you like this." Inuyasha instructed as he held her wrist from behind. "Now, do you think that you have any poison or anything in these bad boys?"  
  
"I don't know inuyasha, I haven't really used these things yet. How will I know?"  
  
"Honestly, I have no clue. My brothers the only one with that ability. Maybe you don't have it, but every youkai has their own unique ability, we just need to find yours." He let her drop her wrist, and then took a step back to look her over while scratching his head in thought. "Okay, here's what we're gonna do. We'll start with your claws first, see what they do, and then we'll fine-tune everything else from there. Alright?"  
  
"Okay, that sounds good. Now...how do I use my claws like you do? You have two techniques that you use, how do I learn to do that?"  
  
Inuyasha smiled in pride, he never imagined anyone would ask for his help on how to use his own attacks. "First thing, lift your hand up again like I showed you," she did so, "now close your eyes, and search your body for your youki." She closed her eyes, and her ears started to hum as she searched within herself. She found jumbles of power, she couldn't distinguish between any of it, and so she just grabbed what she could. "Now focus it at your hand, and we'll see what happens." He waited in anticipation, curious to see what she could do.  
  
Her hand started to glow, and then the light shot out of her fingertips, destroying a large boulder a few hundred yards in the distance. "How was that?!" she asked enthusiastically. "Impressive, except...I couldn't tell if that was your youki or you miko energy. It was hard to read. You couldn't find your youki then?" her smiled started to fade, "I don't know. I couldn't really tell what was in me; I couldn't feel spiritual powers, or youki energy. It's all mixed together." Inuyasha rubbed his chin in thought. "Huh? That's strange. Try again, and this time, try to dig into the power you felt. Pick it apart until you can feel a specific power cord, something familiar and distinctive."  
  
She closed her eyes again, 'wow, inuyasha sure seems to know what he's talking about, I've never heard him sound this intelligent before in these past 4 years.' she delved back into the depths of her soul, searching for something 'distinctive'. She found the power that she felt before, but this time, she tried to get closer. The humming became louder the closer she got, and it was getting very uncomfortable. She came as close as she could without being in pain, and strained to sense what the power was. The vision started to form behind her closed eyelids, almost like what she was looking at was a real object, as real and solid as the rock she stood on. She squinted when it began to shine, and she tried to look passed the light. When her eyes focused, she saw a swirl of two colors, one purple, and the other red. The two colors looked as if they were dancing, but as she tried to get closer, she noticed that they weren't doing anything of the sort. The two power forces were clashing violently against each other, they were fighting. She felt as if she needed to get close to it, to ease them. But as she did, the persistent vibrations became unbearably painful. She was all of a sudden forced out of her own mind, watching as the power disappeared from her view.  
  
Her eyes flew open, and she fell to the ground in pain. Inuyasha, completely caught off guard, fell to the ground with her. 'I don't get it, she looked fine. What happened to her while she was meditating? This isn't good, this isn't normal!' he screamed to himself. "Kagome, kagome! What's wrong, what happened?" kagome didn't say anything, she lay in his arms panting.  
  
"There's a battle waging within her, can you not feel it hanyou?"  
  
Inuyasha's head jerked up when he heard the soft voice. He saw, what appeared to be a miko. She didn't wear the usual garb, but it definitely was miko. The upper haori was white, but she didn't tuck it into her hakama, she only tied it closed at the waist. What's more, the sleeves only went down to the elbow. 'She's a mated priestess? That's impossible.' She wore a hood so he couldn't see the color of her hair; he guessed it was black though. Her hakama looked very odd, they didn't flow to the ground, but tied off just below the knee. She was indeed one with spiritual powers, or else would not have chosen the distinctive colors, but she looked almost like...he couldn't explain it, she was different, she had an animal look to her face. Then he saw them, she had two red slashes on her face, one below each eye. 'a youkai?!'  
  
"Who are you?" he asked in an almost threatening tone  
  
"Do not fear me, I am not here to harm you, or the miko. I have traveled far to see that one." She said in a very soft voice.  
  
"who ever said I was scared of you? And you didn't answer my question! Who are you?! And why are you looking for kagome?!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Back at the hut, shippou was playing with Kirara again, waiting for his okasan to return. He was running to tackle the neko youkai, when he stopped dead in his tracks. The neko "mewed" in question, but the boy only stared into the distance. 'it cant be!'  
  
Without a word, he ran off in the direction of kagome and inuyasha, running on all fours. His mind was racing with questions and possibilities. When he came to the clearing, the first thing he saw was kagome lying in Inuyasha's lap. She looked like she was injured so he ran to her side. "Okasan, okasan. Kagome? Is she alright inuyasha?" when he looked to inuyasha, he wasn't even looking at the kit, but his eyes were searing into something on the other side of the clearing. Shippou followed the inu's gaze to the woman in the strange miko garb.  
  
The woman's eyes were wide the moment the kit ran through the field, calling to the other miko, 'okasan? He thinks she's his mother?' As she watched as the kitsune took notice of her, she smiled warmly, and removed her hood. 'Blond?! No miko's have such a hair color, no human has that hair color!' inuyasha noted to himself. Her hair was indeed a bright yellow, except it darkened at the ends into a deep orange, almost red color. It was in a high ponytail, but it still fell to her lower thigh. As inuyasha continued to survey her, his eyes moved to the top of her head, 'those are...' the top of her head were indeed adorned by ears, much like Inuyasha's but they were red, and they pointed more at the tips.  
  
The woman didn't acknowledge Inuyasha's questioning eyes. "Shippou? Is that you? You're alive?"  
  
Shippou's eyes filled with tears, and he ran to the woman. He latched to her leg as he cried into her clothes. "Shippou, its you. Its really you." The woman was now crying as well. "Okasan, I thought you were dead!"  
  
Japanese:  
  
Koneko: kitten  
  
Hakama: those Japanese pant things. You know, like what Kikyou and Kaede wore.  
  
Haori: the jacket that inuyasha, Kikyou, and Kaede wore.  
  
Suteki: ohhhh, cliffy! Sorry its so short, I figured id be mean and leave it here. So, how you likey?  
  
Shizuka: ha! Told you we had some surprises left in us, lol.  
  
Suteki: okay, in the next chapter, the secret of the strange new 'miko' is revealed. And why does shippou think that she's his mother, if his mother was killed by the thunder brothers? And why is she looking for kagome, and how does she know what's happening within her? All will be answered! Review please =) ja ne! 


	12. Revelations of Prophecy

Disclaimer: this is the LAST time I'm saying it: I DON'T OWN INUYASHA!! Haha, I said it 11 times I think, so if that isn't enough for ya, then stick it! lol. jk ;p  
  
Suteki: hey! I'm glad I got so many responses out of my last chapter!  
  
Shizuka: you know, she writes all your names down in a little book she has that's entitled, "My Best and Only Friends"  
  
Suteki: shut up! Well, its true, I do have a book, OF RECORDS, lol. don't worry, I'm not stalking all of you...or am I?...mwuhahahaha!  
  
Shizuka: okay, enough with the insanity, lets start the chapter.  
  
Last time:  
  
The woman's eyes were wide the moment the kit ran through the field, calling to the other miko, 'okasan? He thinks she's his mother?' As she watched as the kitsune took notice of her, she smiled warmly, and removed her hood. 'Blond?! No miko's have such a hair color, no human has that hair color!' inuyasha noted to himself. Her hair was indeed a bright yellow, except it darkened at the ends into a deep orange, almost red color. It was in a high ponytail, but it still fell to her lower thigh. As inuyasha continued to survey her, his eyes moved to the top of her head, 'those are...' the top of her head were indeed adorned by ears, much like Inuyasha's but they were red, and they pointed more at the tips.  
  
The woman didn't acknowledge Inuyasha's questioning eyes. "Shippou? Is that you? You're alive?"  
  
Shippou's eyes filled with tears, and he ran to the woman. He latched to her leg as he cried into her clothes. "Shippou, its you. Its really you." The woman was now crying as well. "Okasan, I thought you were dead!"  
  
Chapter 11: Revelations of Prophecy  
  
"Shippou?! You know her?! Maybe you can tell me who this wench is then." Inuyasha yelled in frustration. Shippou turned around to face inuyasha, his eyes narrowing at him with anger, "inuyasha, NEVER call my mother names dog- breath!" by this time kagome had regained enough consciousness to listen to the conversation, but the dizzy spell she had acquired kept her from opening her eyes, or saying anything. 'Mother? I thought...I thought I was his mom now...it cant be his fleshly mother, could it?'  
  
"Mother? Impossible, I thought you told us she was killed by the thunder brothers, along with your father..."  
  
Seeing both her son's and the hanyou's confused looks, she decided to speak. "Inuyasha, mind if I call you that?" he nodded, "alright, inuyasha, shippou. I guess there's a lot that I need to explain. First off, I want to confirm something...your father, Sasuko, he was indeed struck down, was he not shippou?" tears welled up in both their eyes, a little more in the boys though, "yes...although I was wrong about you, I saw fathers body...in his fox form...he cant be alive..."  
  
Inuyasha nodded, he understood the confirmation that meant. You see, when fox youkai die, or are weakened to the point of death, they're bodies convert to that of a normal fox. It's a last ditch effort to preserve strength, or to make as a disguise from predators searching for the youkai.  
  
"I see..." she replied sadly. "Lets sit down shall we shippou my dear, this is going to be a long story..."  
  
(A/N~yes, you have to listen to the WHOLE story, for the sake of knowing what's going on, lol)  
  
As the two fox youkai walked over near inuyasha and kagome, inuyasha instinctively pulled kagome closer to him, also making room for the other two. When the woman and her kit sat adjacent to inuyasha, she stared up into the clouds at first, trying to think of where to start. "Oh yes, inuyasha. I do not think we were properly introduced. My name is Katasuki, of the Rosuto pack. As you may have already caught on, shippou is my son; we are the last of our clan, of our kind for that matter. And may I ask what your relationship is to my son? You seem to know each other quite well." She smiled at him politely.  
  
Inuyasha blinked a few times, not really knowing to answer the awkward question. "well um...I found him I guess right after the attack on your family...and then, kagome here, insisted that we take him in. so we, kagome mainly, have taken care of him for the past several years. Kagome was actually his mother figure...so I guess..." he paused as he started to blush from the personal description.  
  
"You're his father figure, I see. I cant thank you both enough for taking care of my son while I was gone." She smiled again, and the hanyou rubbed the back of his neck, "it was nothing, really."  
  
"Gone? Where were you? Why didn't you come for me mama? I thought you were dead! I was all alone and scared. I waited near our den for days after the attack, hoping id at least find your body. I never did, and I stumbled upon kagome soon after I had given up hope. Where'd you go?" shippou was now trying to fight back his tears, wanting nothing more than to get the answers that had plagued him since that fateful day. Katasuki stroked the top of his head while she held him close, trying to get him to calm down. "I...I thought I was dead also. All I remember was falling to the ground in the surrounding forest, looking for you. I collapsed when my body reverted to its fox form...I thought I wouldn't make it, and I thought you hadn't either. I started to give into the pain, and then...I was surrounded by a strange light and thought it was the afterworld." Both inuyasha and shippou were listening intently to the story, as well as kagome, who was still to weak to open her eyes.  
  
"I later awoke, in a village that I had never seen before. I was once again in my youkai form, as I am now, and was completely confused. A young miko came into me, and she explained every thing. She had found me slipping into death, and so she used her power to revive me. She had known of our family, which wasn't surprising, we were watched over by various miko's and priests. She brought me back to a village she was lodging at, and she cared for me until I was able to walk again. She had spoken of the shikon no tama, which had been revived. This, I was not aware of at the time. Our family was peaceful; we had no use for such things. But, several of recent occurrences she spoke of, such as the appearance of kagome, struck me as familiar. My mother was the daughter of a human miko, and she told me of many prophecies. As I listened to the young woman's stories of current events, something struck me as pieces of an unsolved mystery began to unfold in my memory."  
  
"What unsolved mystery? A prophecy? Who was the miko that you were talking too? She sounds suspicious if she knew of kagome then. Kagome didn't have a reputation in this world at that time. Only her friends and enemies knew of her. She was only friends with one miko, and she was no where near young. This is beginning to sound like Naraku, speaking of the jewel and kagome." Inuyasha asked in curiosity.  
  
"She was indeed young. Her name was Kikyou. She spoke of you also inuyasha."  
  
Inuyasha's heart clenched, as did his hold on kagome. He noticed her flinch and tense, and he released her, ashamed that she noticed his reaction to Kikyou's name. 'Kikyou? I'm sorry kagome, it's just that...I haven't heard her name in so long, and I've tried to forget about her. What could she possibly have to do with this?' kagome was also having such thoughts, 'why does Kikyou always have to come back to haunt us? I felt inuyasha react to her name, as if it pained him to hear it. What's going on?'  
  
The youkai noticed the change in his demeanor. "You knew her, i knew that already. I am sorry if she brings up bad memories, I know what happened between the two of you, and about her demise not so long ago. I began to notice, and feel, the negativity in her when she spoke of kagome and of the jewel, which confirmed my suspicions. I felt that she wasn't what she appeared to be, which is why I left in a hurry."  
  
"Where'd you go from there? If you had stayed in the area, you would have picked up my scent, and me yours."  
  
"I left for china. I grew up in a shrine in East China, the Kasai Shrine. There I searched out miko's that could help me. Together, we uncovered scrolls of legends long forgotten. Unlike other shrines, this one kept scrolls written by youkai. The one I searched for, was written by my godmother, a youkai prophet."  
  
By this time, kagome was coming too. She opened her eyes, becoming very interested in the conversation. When inuyasha felt her shift her head, he picked her up so she was sitting in his lap, with her head supported by his chest. Katasuki bowed to her without word, and then continued.  
  
"The legend spoke of a certain miko that would appear. It said that she would be of this world, yet not of this world, she would exist in two places at once. She would be powerful and yet kind. What is more, she would have the shikon no tama in her possession. Now at first, I believed that this one must have been Kikyou right? She fits. But, as I said , I later realized that she was not pure. She had a hatred of kagome, and that's when I turned to search out her history. I never found it of course, but as time progressed, I heard stories. Finally, one of the miko's told me of the witch that created Kikyou, and of Kagome's part in it. That's when it hit me. Kagome, she is not originally of this time. However, her soul now exists in both eras."  
  
"This is all fascinating, but, we already knew all of it. What does this have to do with anything?" inuyasha was becoming annoyed at having to relive parts of his past he had buried.  
  
"Calm down inuyasha, there is more. But upon further investigation, I found parts of the prophecy that could in no way fit her description. It spoke of a miko of no other kind seen in any legend, she would be a miko, with youki energy. Such a thing was unheard of, and some of the miko's began to give up, thinking it was too far fetched. But the legend goes on to say, that this one would hold something inside of her, something that would rival the power of the shikon no tama in all its glory. When I heard of the final fight with Naraku, I came to investigate. I didn't know what had happened to the jewel, or to kagome-san. But now I know, the prophecy was correct."  
  
Kagome was very unsettled at what she was hearing. 'I'm in a prophecy? How is that possible? I'm from the future! I'm not some Feudal era heroine. Shut up kagome, you know that you're life isn't normal, you were meant to come here. You were just wrong thinking that that was the end of your destiny. I hate my life...ugh! Why am I talking to myself, and why do I feel like people are staring at me?' sure enough, when she looked up, pairs of eyes wore boring into her. She decided to speak herself. "Okay...so why have you come to tell me this?" her voice sounded scratchy from being dry, and unused.  
  
"At first, I was only coming to see what had become of the jewel. But when I saw you traveling a lone a few moons ago, I knew I had to warn you."  
  
"Warn me? Of what?"  
  
"Well, I had noticed that you were indeed youkai, proving my theory correct. I stumbled across another youkai, who had been following you as well, and he told me the whole story."  
  
"Another youkai? I was being followed? I didn't sense anything the whole time I was gone."  
  
"The best thing about being small my dear." Everyone focused trying to tell where the voice came from. Katasuki moved a lock of hair away from her neck, to reveal the tiny eavesdropper. "Myouga-jiji?!" "Konnichiwa, kagome- sama, nice to see you again. As well you, my master."  
  
"I was wondering where you had gotten too Myouga. So, you're the one who led her here? Did you know that she was Shippou's mother?"  
  
"No, actually. She never mentioned her personal life, only her objective. I too have heard of the legend she speaks of, and so I was quick to help. I had followed kagome here, when she left you, curious as to where she was going, and how she was able to move so fast. Before we could catch up to her, she vanished. Katasuki-sama told me that it was the power of teleportation, a power that only the strongest of miko's can master. So I led her here, guessing she would come back to you me Lord"  
  
There was a break of silence as the rest of the group was still absorbing the strange turn in events. "Katasuki-san, you never answered my question though. Warn me of what?"  
  
"Oh, my apologies. Yes. The prophecy stated that the miko would face great difficulties before the revealing of the inner possession. On my journey, I spent many days in meditation, trying to figure out what it could mean. I came to the conclusion that I wouldn't know what I was dealing with until I saw you. But now...I see what it is that you have to overcome in order to survive this."  
  
"Survive?! You mean this is life threatening?" kagome was getting scared now, she had just been told that she's the center of some strange legend (another one) and that this one could take her life.  
  
"You have felt ill as of late, correct?" kagome nodded. And inuyasha looked down at her with a stunned and almost hurt look on his face, not knowing why she didn't tell him. Katasuki, seeing this, interrupted before kagome could explain.  
  
"There is a battle of power going on inside of you right now. Your spiritual power is trying to fight off your youki, and vice versa. If you do not do something to calm them, and quickly, it could very well destroy you entirely."  
  
The whole group sat in silence, half already thinking of what they could do to fix the predicament, the other drowning in worry (inuyasha and shippou of course).  
  
Now that kagome thought of it, it all made sense to her. She still didn't understand how she had, once again, weaved her way into some ancient legend, but she wasn't going to question it any further. So many things were hitting her at once, including shippou having found his mother, that she was beginning to feel dizzy again. She fought it back, and then tried to ignore it. "Do you know of any ways we can fix this, Katasuki-san?" the older woman sat in thought for a few moments. "Not off hand...but if we're going to get anywhere, lets lose the formalities, I never really cared for them. I already feel as if I know you, and you were practically the mother of my child for a prolonged period. Okay, kagome-Chan?"  
  
Kagome smiled, knowing that she was going to get along with this woman just fine, "I agree, Katasuki-Chan."  
  
"Okay, now, lets return to where ever it is that you are lodging, it is starting to get chilly out, and from the sounds coming from my sons stomach, as well as Inuyasha's, I believe it is time for dinner. After which, we can discuss details and theories. Does that sound alright to you?" kagome nodded, "boys?" they nodded also, both still dumbfounded by the intensity of the days events. 'maybe this will all make sense after a gut full of ramen.'  
  
Suteki: sorry it was short...again. I hope you liked it! I didn't really know what Katasuki would have to tell kagome, so I just made it up as I went along  
  
Shizuka: yeah, you can tell. No wonder it doesn't make any sense.  
  
Suteki: no, that's just cause you're dense.  
  
A/N~ okay, next chapter. Let the brainstorming begin, and the tests start! Don't forget to review! ;) arigatou!! 


	13. Kagome's Conflicting Soul

Suteki: **IMPORTANT** incase some of you SKIPPED the authors note thing before this chapter, here's a recap...hey, I'm glad that you all liked the past chapters. I was thinking about throwing in some good ol' lemon in here. I've never done it before, but I'm confident that I can do it. essie, hanyou_kagome, and The_magician, I'm mainly worried about turning you 3 away, since you're may loyal readers. Tell me what you think (along with OTHER READERS as well) and then ill make my decision. I'm just worried that this story just has too much stuff happening without a break. So maybe I'll just throw in a chap with nothing going on except further development with kag/inu. Tell me what you think!  
  
Shizuka: I'm going to say anything since she already wrote a lot, but we are both depending on your reviews for this little idea. Arigatou!  
  
Chapter 12: Kagome's Conflicting Soul  
  
Two days have passed since Katasuki's addition to the group. Shippou could ONLY be found attached to Katasuki, and had NEVER been so ecstatic. His mouth had been on overdrive while he tried to tell his mother of just about everything that he and his new-found-family had done over the past years. Miroku, Sango, inuyasha, and even kagome tried to steer clear of the little motor-mouth after a while. While they were hiding, Miroku, Sango, and inuyasha were all busy trying to figure out the situation regarding kagome.  
  
Kagome herself, preferred to be alone, much Inuyasha's dismay. He would still watch her from a distance as she sat either at the well, the god tree, or the nearby stream meditating. He couldn't have gotten close even if she hadn't said anything, because while she would sink into the depths of her mind, her miko powers would swirl around her and would surely purify him in an instant. 'stupid wench, she probably wouldn't even know it if she burnt me to a crisp. Stupid miko's...always causing some sort of problems, keh!'  
  
None of them were getting close to coming up with a solution to Kagome's 'condition'. They were still trying to figure out what Katasuki was going to do. She had promised to help, but so far, all she's done was mess around with shippou. Which was understandable, but, they were all getting restless.  
  
"Good day Houshi." Came a smooth and calm voice.  
  
Miroku was drawn from his meditation by the voice, "Katasuki-sama? How can I help you?"  
  
"I am sorry to disturb you, but could you point me in the direction of the Taijiya?"  
  
"oh, Sango-sama? Um, I believe that she is training with Kirara east of the river. Why do you ask?"  
  
"I have an idea of what may be wrong with kagome-sama, but I need Sango- chans help with it. Thank you my dear Houshi."  
  
Miroku watched her walk off in the direction of Sango with a confused look on his face. 'amongst Shippou's ranting, she had enough time to come up with a theory? 'Smart and beautiful...a deadly combination, one that's all too popular in my company.'  
  
As the fox youkai approached the Taijiya and neko companion, she could hear a battle in progress. She could feel the energy radiating off two beings. 'she is strong, the two of them are accenting each others auras. The Taijiya does not use any kind of spell, threat, or bribery to attain the neko's loyalty, it is given freely. It is a shame that not all youkai and humans could live so peacefully.' She walked over a small hill and watched the scene infront of her. The woman was leaping through the air towards the fire neko, who was also in the air. The woman was wielding a wooden sword and swinging at the youkai, who would then block it with its legs and then swing back; they were sparring. Kirara was the first to notice the other youkai approach, and settled on the ground, quickly followed by her master. "oh, ohayo Katasuki-sama, I didn't see you there. Can I help you with something? If you're looking for shippou, I'm pretty sure he's with kagome at the moment." "Thank you but no, I was looking for you. I came to discuss my idea about helping kagome."  
  
Sango's face suddenly gleamed with hope. "oh! You've figured out how to save her? That's just wonderful!" The older woman shook her head, "no, I haven't gotten that far yet. But I do believe that I may have come up with a way to draw a solution."  
  
Sango walked over to stand infront of Katasuki, earnestly waiting for her to continue. Seeing this, she proceeded, "I want you to spar with Kagome- sama. I want you to make her fight with you, using her powers, both miko and youki. You see, I believe that it is possible for one of the energy sources to be dominant, and we need to figure out which one it is. As with emotions, there is a more powerful, but also a more determined or forceful one. If we can determine which one is which, then we have a place to start. If we can equal them out somehow, then I believe that we can neutralize the threat."  
  
Sango was now watching the ground, intently studying a rock as she nodded. She had understood her theory, but was now worried that kagome might be injured by the procedure, or possibly injure her sparring partner on accident, 'guess I'll just have to trust her and see what happens.'  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
After agreeing and preparing, Sango set out to find kagome. After searching for nearly an hour, she stumbled upon her. She was sitting in a tree at the edge of a cliff, staring off into a vast canyon. 'I'll never get used to having to look in trees to find her, its just too weird.' Kagome was too deep in thought to sense her friend coming, and nearly fell off her perch when she called out to her, "Oi, kagome-Chan!" "Sango! You scared the CRAP out of me! Ugh, yeah, what do you want?" she called down to her, not moving from her spot, only looking over her shoulder. "You want to do some practice with me and Katasuki today? We think it might help you." "Practice? Isn't it a bad idea to use my powers if they're causing such problems? Last time I tried training with inuyasha, I passed out, or do you not remember?"  
  
Sango sighed, she thought she might be scared. "This is different kagome. Katasuki thinks that she might be able to help you with this if she watches you battle with me. Now come down and fight me girl!" kagome sat and thought for a moment, it was Katasuki's idea huh? She trusted her opinion, she was very wise. With that thought, she stepped off the tree branch to land gracefully next to her friend. "Lets do it then!" "That's more like it." Sango smiled back at kagome, who's face was still a little wary.  
  
They walked the long ways back to the village, following Kagome's nose to Katasuki, who seemed to have settled somewhere just outside of the town. They walked in silence, just enjoying the peace of the calm forest, and each others company. Sango and kagome had developed a close connection over the course of their journey, and didn't even need to speak to know what the other was thinking. When the village was in sight, kagome veered to the west, and moments later they found Katasuki who was sitting in a clearing, apparently waiting for them patiently. Upon their arrival, she stood to great them. "Great, now lets get started shall we?"  
  
Sango took her place opposite of kagome, at the boundary of the trees. The field was about the size of a baseball diamond, so they were a good 300 feet apart. They both positioned themselves in a fighting stance, ready to begin. Sango, being the more experienced one, made the first move. She charged at kagome with her practice katana bared. "Try using a spiritual barrier kagome!" kagome did as Katasuki ordered, and put up a small shield in front of her to meet Sango's weapon. It held strong, cackling at the contact of Sango's attack. "Good, now attack her with your youki!" kagome hesitated, not quite sure if she wanted too. She still wasn't too sure how too. But, she had, in secret, been practicing with her claws. She held her hands in front of her, and watched as they extended and began to glow in a red light. She raised them up and then threw them back down, and watched as bolts of light shot from her hand. Katasuki smiled when she felt no miko energy in the attack, she had gotten that much control at least. Sango was able to dodge the shots, and came back at kagome for the next assault. But before she could get to her, kagome fell to one knee again.  
  
'That's it. That was simple enough, but I want to keep going a little more, she looks like she can continue.'  
  
Sure enough, kagome stood again, and nodded to Sango to let her know that she wanted to keep going. Sango was hesitant, so kagome attacked. She used her claws again, but this time, the light was intermingled with purple energy and the attack shot out in different directions, nowhere near Sango. Kagome fell to the ground again, and started to pant. Sango looked worriedly at Katasuki, but she just waved at her, telling her to keep going. Sango didn't argue, and she raced to kagome who looked up at her and her eyes flashed with red and purple light as she fought to put up a shield. The violet dome appeared around her, but there were undertones of red that flashed and cackled inside the shield around kagome, bouncing against the barrier.  
  
"Okay, stop Sango, that's enough"  
  
Sango immediately slid to an abrupt stop, halting right infront of the unstable shield produced by her friend. "Kagome! Are you okay??" she yelled over the crackling. She was worried, she couldn't see kagome through the light, and she wasn't making any reply to her question. All of a sudden, the shield flashed and dissipated. The ground that had been inside the barrier was charred and smoking. In the middle of the destruction laid kagome, out cold.  
  
"What happened to her?! Is she going to be alright?" Sango screamed frantically. ' I knew I shouldn't have pushed her!!!' she screamed to herself.  
  
"Calm down dear, lady Kagome is fine. Her powers got the better of her, but she'll wake soon, just wait. I thank you Sango, this has helped me a lot."  
  
Sango blinked, she thought that it had been a failure; she didn't see anything that helped her to understand the predicament. "What did you observe that I did not, Katasuki-sama?"  
  
"Did you not feel it? In her attacks, the barrier, in her very aura...her demon blood is fighting for the dominance that the miko power secures at the moment. Kagome favors the miko energy, being familiar with it, and the youki is becoming restless, fighting its way to the surface. The battle just now was not between you and kagome, it was the youki and miko chi fighting each other. Whenever the miko chi is used, the youki forces a portal by itself, trying to replace the holy power. At this time, the miko chi tries to purify it, but is unable too since the youki holds the same life pattern as its host, which it is unable and unwilling to harm. So, they are fighting a losing battle amongst themselves, unknowingly destroying their host in the process."  
  
Sango could only stare at her, eyes big as billiard balls, completely lost. "oookay...got it. So in a nutshell...the youki is uncontrollable, and the miko energy is unable to settle it."  
  
"Correct"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
While 'Chi 101 with Miss Katasuki Rosuto' was transpiring, kagome was lost in her own mind.  
  
At first, she could hear the faint voices of Sango and Katasuki, but they soon faded entirely. She fluttered her eyes open, trying to regain her composure. She blinked repeatedly, not able to gain her sight, or so she thought. She soon realized, that she was no longer in the field she was fighting Sango in. "Sango...Katasuki?" she gasped as she heard her own voice echo off into the blackness that surrounded her. She stood on shaky legs, and looked around. She couldn't see anything, literally. The darkness was so think, that she had to raise her hand to her nose so she could see it. She quickly began quivering in fear, and bolted her eyes shut tight...it was dark...too dark and it was getting increasingly cold. She shivered as she felt a presence behind her, a very familiar and welcomed one. Her eyes shot open as she turned around, 'Inuyasha!' she said to herself, still afraid to speak again. Sure enough, when she turned towards the direction of the presence, she saw inuyasha...but that's not all she saw...he was with her...with "Kikyou" she spat out into the darkness, not even noticing the eerie echo that led in its wake.  
  
Inuyasha was embracing Kikyou, as she stared over his shoulder towards the now very shocked and very pissed kagome, and smirked. Kagome let out a loud growl in response. Kikyou pushed inuyasha away from herself, and then looked into his eyes. Kagome looked into his eyes as well, and they were void of life, the glistening gold was replaced with a pale yellow, the flaming amber of the eyes she loved were now dead. Then she watched in horror as inuyasha leaned forward and kissed Kikyou with all the love and passion that she herself longed for.  
  
Kagome fought back the tears, and was finally able to shut her eyes, forcing the tears out in the action. But even in the shelter of her own eyelids, there was a show for her. Images of inuyasha and Kikyou appeared before her closed eyes, scenes that she had long forced out of her mind. The haunting images of the past, the ones that had caused her so much hurt...so much hatred. Then...she heard Inuyasha's voice. "I'm sorry kagome, I promised to go to hell with Kikyou, I must do it when the time comes." She cringed at the familiar words, the words he spoke to her when she had confessed her love for him some years ago. "I just don't love you the way I do Kikyou," 'what?! He never said that to me!' "She's just so much stronger and more beautiful than you are kagome" the voice became a little harsher and crueler, as it stabbed her through the heart. ' I knew it! I knew that's how he thought of me! I was always second rate in his heart!'  
  
She was in a full-fledged rage now, and growled as she opened her eyes fiercely. Expecting to see Kikyou and inuyasha, she was completely prepared to slice both their throats as the kissed each other. But, she was greeted by her own face. It was like someone put a mirror infront of her, full length. She stared into the reflection's eyes as she gasped in surprise. The eyes of the one that stared back flashed red, and she was smiling like the devil himself. The manifestation flexed its claws and then proceed to speak, "its alright to hate kagome. They hurt you, you can hurt them back. Revenge is the greatest feeling in the world. Inuyasha hates you, always has and you know it. Kikyou, keh, Kikyou's just a bitch and deserves to die regardless." The voice was harsh, but was still her own.  
  
Kagome smiled and flexed her extended claws as she listened to her minds words. She then watched as the image of her was consumed in a vivid red, a blood red. Soon, all that was left was the red light, and it lingered infront of her; throbbing along with the heartbeat that she could feel in her chest, the same that pounded in her ears.  
  
'That is...that's the youki in my blood!' she retracted her claws and calmed the red flashes erupting in her eyes as realization dawned on her. "No! You are only feeding me lies. Inuyasha does NOT hate me! And I do not hate him, why are you telling me this? Leave me alone!"  
  
As she screamed at the glowing mass, she felt a presence behind her. She turned reluctantly, knowing who it was. It was inuyasha, but this time, he was alone. He stood only a few feet infront of her. "inu...yasha..." she whispered. She looked into his eyes, and was met by the fiery pools she knew and loved. Without replying, he walked over to her and embraced her as his lips met hers in the same passion and desire that she held for him. She closed her eyes into the kiss, and as she did, she was met by another onslaught of images. She saw images of the past, of them holding hands, of their first kiss, of all the sweet words he had said to her when he let his guard down, of all the nights they had spent watching the starry skies together, of the first time she saw him. She began to cry as his voice flowed into mind. "Kagome! Don't leave me!" she remembered this as the night they fought the thunder brothers, "I need you kagome," the time Kikyou trapped her on her side of the well, "I love you, I will always protect you."  
  
She felt tears return, but this time tears of joy, the tears of her fears being settled. She opened her eyes as she felt the loss of Inuyasha's lips. She watched as once again, she was met by her reflection. But this one, resonated of holy light, and smiled sweetly. The demon traits were gone, except for the pointed ears, and she was wearing miko robes. "You know what is true in your heart, you love inuyasha and he deserves no place in your heart that is tainted with malice, he loves you." Then the figure slowly faded in violet light, but this time, it didn't disappear, but was replaced by another form. "Midoriko? I thought that you existed only in the jewel, how can you still be with me?"  
  
The form of the older woman in ancient armor smiled at her and spoke sweetly. "Lady Kagome, I did not only reside in the Shikon no Tama. Did you not know, that you are the reincarnation of me?"  
  
"But...I thought I was the reincarnation of-"she was interrupted before the 'forbidden ones' name left her lips. "You are correct, but she was the reincarnation of me, of the jewel. When the jewel vanished, my soul was released from it. As a result, it returned to your body where it originally would have resigned if not contained by the jewel."  
  
Kagome 'o'ed in response.  
  
"But I did not bring you here to tell you this. Lady Kagome, you must fight the darkness. You must fight the twisted lies of your past hatred. Your youki is feeding of the traces of hatred to become stronger, to win over the purity in your soul. You must tame it, clear all the feelings that the youkai in you can manipulate. Keep in mind; it is not your enemy in the sense, so you must not try to purify it completely. It is only desperate for dominance and recognition, you must satisfy it in some way. I have faith in you, and you have my strength as well, may Kami show favor on you."  
  
And with that, the vision faded, and she was left with the glows of the red and violet light which had now become separate and waited as if expecting her to pick which one she favored. She felt alone, yet could still hear Midorikos words, and could still feel Inuyasha's touch. "I can do this" she spoke aloud as she turned to face the glowing redness of her soul. "I will put an end to my souls bickering, and establish peace within myself once again..."  
  
Suteki: so...what you think???I kinda got on a role there, so I'm sorry if it was kinda long.  
  
Shizuka: just as a reminder, please leave us your opinion on the following chapters, arigatou! 


	14. Hateshi no Hari, and the Megami Ningen

Suteki: thank you to everyone that replied regarding the 'filler chapter', I was surprised at how fast I got answers and suggestions. So, due to popular demand, the lemons are a comin! Not this chapter most likely, but next chapter for sure ;) so, once again, thank you for your great support with the story, and hope you continue to enjoy!!  
  
Shizuka: yaayyyyy! Lemons!! Lol, you all have really been a great help to us, we cant stress that enough. We'd also like to thank all our close friends that have supported us through this whole endeavor, **sniffle** we feel so loved! Lol.  
  
Suteki: oh yeah, don't mind the title. I know its completely in Japanese, but you'll find out what it means as you read the chapter. Oh, and NO there isn't any list of the vocab at the bottom, so ha! There's no way you can cheat, it's a surprise! Lol.  
  
Chapter 13: Hateshi no Hari, and the Megami Ningen  
  
Kagome turned to face the glowing red aura behind her. As she settled her eyes on it, she glared as it began to produce random imagges of inuyasha and Kikyou. She stepped towards it with a determined look on her face, although she really had no clue what to do. She walked up to it, and stood within a couple of feet from the blood red light. It continued to show her images of inuyasha and Kikyou, some she had been unfortunate to have witnessed, some she didn't recognize. None the less, she was trying her hardest to block them out. But no matter how strong her endeavor was, they still hurt her deep inside. She reached a clawed hand out to touch the light, in some desperate attempt to make the images stop; she didn't know how touching it would help, but she was going to break any moment.  
  
As her hand touched the outer rays of it, one final image was projected merely inches from her face, front row seats, and tears quickly filled in her shocked eyes...it was inuyasha and Kikyou...making love?! 'No, no, no...this isn't real! He would never do that to me! No...inuyasha...' the pain was finally enough for her as she began to retreat slowly from the image. She backed up a few feet from it, and then stood still, just staring. 'no kagome! You know that these are only tricks to make you hurt to the point of uncontrollable rage...but...but why would my own soul want to put me through this? This isn't fair!'  
  
She was now royally pissed, even if it was at herself...or part of herself, she didn't care. "STOP IT!!!!!" she screamed at the top of her lungs as the inuyasha in the vision cried out Kikyou's name in the passion the two were sharing. She was about to lunge herself back at the glowing personification of her soul, when she felt something come to life behind her. Before she could even turn to face it, a bluish-purple blur rushed past her, colliding with the crimson light.  
  
She stared in horror as her two souls fought together. At every attack the lights made at each other, a short shot of pain would thrash at her spine. She had to stop them, it was now or never, she had to put an end to this, somehow. She fell to her knees as the two collided violently again. She lay there panting, crying, and confused. She had no idea what to do, 'if I don't do something soon...they'll kill me.' With that last desperate thought, she forced herself to stand, and rushed with all her strength over to the two beings.  
  
She reached out her hand, thrust it deep within the chaos of the souls, and grabbed at the air. She held her hand there for a moment and clenched her hand to the point where her knuckles turned white and her nails drew blood from her palm, and uttered a silent plea, 'please...stop this insanity!!' she opened her eyes from the prayer, and looked to her hand. The lights had stopped all movement when she grabbed onto them, but now they began to move again. They began to glow brightly, and then shot out to form a ring around their host. Then, just as quickly, they were sucked into the girls clutches. But before the glowing ceased, she noticed two small amounts of light infront of her, one crimson the other amethyst. They formed into the miko and youkai forms of herself and opened their eyes to look at her. They both showed no expression on their features, but kagome caught a glimmer of something in both pairs of familiar eyes. She couldn't quite name it, hope? Thankfulness? Relief? She was usually good at reading others eyes, but not her own. Then, as if shielding themselves, they closed their eyes and without a word, the beings both dissipated into the darkness.  
  
Kagome wasn't sure what had just happened, 'did it work???' she wondered. She noticed that the energy she had felt from the two auras had not left, but felt closer than ever. That's when she noticed something glimmering in- between her fingers. She slowly opened her sore hand, and gasped in shock at what she found.  
  
"Its...its beautiful..." she said aloud. In her palm laid some kind of...crystal. That was the only way she could describe it. it was completely different from the shikon no tama. It wasn't a perfect sphere, and its color was drastically different. It glowed with several colors, the main being jade. She held it closer to look at the detail, there were traces of a fiery red, deep purple, and pale yellow. It was shaped almost like a star, having four large points, and then little ones in-between. In its entirety, it was only about an inch and a half in height, and maybe 3/4s of an inch in width. It was like nothing she had ever seen before, it looked so majestic.  
  
"This cant be...my souls can it?" she said in an exhausted yet curious tone. All of a sudden, she felt her world spin, and the image of the crystal and her hand began to swim infront of her. Before she knew it, the ground began to get a little too close, and then all was black.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
During Kagome's revelations, Katasuki, and an over-frantic Sango carried her back to the hut where they watched her cringe and whimper in her sleep. They were all beginning to get worried, even the well-composed Katasuki was beginning to sweat.  
  
"Katasuki what do we do! She's been out for hours now, and she has a terrible fever!" Sango yelled at the older woman.  
  
"if we lose her, I'll slit your throat damn wench! Why would you make her fight like that if you knew that it wasn't good for her!" the angry hanyou raged.  
  
The fox leaned over the fallen inu youkai and placed a cold moist cloth to her forehead. "Lord Inuyasha, Sango-Chan...you are not helping her by yelling like this. You need to calm yourselves, she's waking up." She said calmly. In an instant Sango, inuyasha, and shippou were all hovering over kagome as she sighed one last time and then started to stir.  
  
Kagome fluttered her eyes open, and instantly felt very cramp. "hi" she said, her voice sounding a little hoarse. As the others stepped back to give her some room to breath, she took in her surroundings and noticed that she was in her home. "how long have a been out?" she asked, not even trying to get up.  
  
"About 6 hours straight my dear," Katasuki replied, causing Kagome's eyes to widen for a second, "wow, it only felt like half an hour to me."  
  
Everyone blinked, 'how could she know? She was unconscious; time should have stood still for her. Huh.' "What do you mean kagome? What happened while you were out?"  
  
Kagome immediately met eyes with the worried Sango and gave her a sorrowful and confused look. "Why do you ask?" she said in almost a whisper. "You were having fits while you slept, like you were having a nightmare. We thought something might have been terribly wrong."  
  
Kagome just stared at her closed fists, 'was it a dream? It felt so real...' she continued to stare at her hands, and the silence was making everyone else in the room very antsy. 'there's only one to find out, and sitting here stunned is not it.' she reluctantly started to open both of her hands slowly. She gasped as her eyes focused on her right palm, followed by the astonished gasps of the rest of the small room.  
  
"Where'd you find that kagome? Its pretty!" cried the excited kit. "Yes kagome-Chan. I've never seen you with that before, did you find it before we battled?" kagome continued to gawk at the small crystal in her hand, along with everyone else. Everyone except Katasuki of course, who just smiled knowingly.  
  
"You did it kagome, I knew you could. Still, your power is amazing and immeasurable to complete an act such as this." Kagome only moved her gaze up to the older shrine maiden, her mouth now hanging open a bit. "What the hell are you talking about? Stop speaking in tongues wench!"  
  
Ignoring inuyasha, Katasuki knelt beside kagome. "tell us kagome, what did you see while you were unconscious?" kagome gulped, not knowing where to start, she still wasn't sure what happened herself.  
  
"Well...umm... I woke up in the blackest dark I've ever experienced, and was all alone at first. Then...I saw my youki, and it started trying to make me angry by conjuring up images infront of me..." she paused trying to force the images out of her mind after thinking of them again. "Images? What kind of images?" asked Miroku. "Id rather not say," she replied as she turned a guilty look up to inuyasha who was listening intently. 'How could I have ever let those lies get to me? I'm sorry inuyasha...' He raised an eyebrow when he saw the look in her eyes, and was about to ask what was wrong with her when she continued. "And then it transformed itself into...I don't know, another me I guess you could say, but it was like this bloodthirsty demon, and it continued to tell me lies and show me things until it almost ripped away my sanity. I almost fell into its trap, but I realized what it was trying to do at the last moment, and fought it off."  
  
She paused to let it all sink into her as reality, also giving the others a chance to catch up with what she was telling them. "Then, I saw my miko chi, and it tried to help me and reassure me that everything I was seeing was a lie. Then, it transformed into the...the pure miko form of me I guess. Midoriko also appeared to me, and told me that I was the reincarnation of her and the jewel, so I now had her added power with me." She paused again as she caught her breath. It wasn't really making any sense to her, so she could only imagine what the others were thinking. 'they probably think I'm insane, talking to all my different personalities in my head. Ha!'  
  
"she also told me that my two auras were battling, the youki for dominance and recognition, I think is what she said. I had no idea how I was supposed to restore balance, but I decided to start with the youki since it was the one that was being uncooperative. When I tried to take hold of it...it showed me one last vision..." her voice cracked as she finished her sentence, and couldn't help but blush at remembering the false manifestation she had seen, half in modesty, the other in anger. She wasn't angry because she thought what she saw might have been true, but she was mad at herself for being effected by it so badly, and at another part of herself that would have used something like that against herself.  
  
She tried to regain herself before she continued, but she didn't even notice the stray tear that had easily slid from the corner of one eye. This however didn't go unnoticed by the present hanyou who was quickly kneeling infront of her, wiping away the tear with his thumb before it reached her chin. "Whatever you saw kagome, it wasn't true and I think you know that. Its alright, we're all here with you now, you can just forget what ever you saw." She looked at him questioningly at first, 'its almost like he knows what I saw...it feels a little awkward being this close to him after what I saw,' then she blushed again as she remember ed the kiss she had shared with him in her vision. "tha-thank you, inuyasha." She said as she managed to catch her daze and smile at him reassuringly. "I'm okay, really."  
  
"Good, I hate seeing women cry," 'especially you,' he added to himself as he sat down a couple of feet infront of her Indian style. He waved a hand at her when she only stared, "continue now, please. We are all wondering where the hell that little thing came from."  
  
"Oh yes! Well...after I saw the last image, I screamed at it and then my miko half attacked it without warning! As they fought, I could feel it tearing me up from the inside, so I grabbed at them. They stopped fighting, and then they both were pulled into my hand, and when I opened it, this was all that was left of them." She said holding the crystal up to the sunlight that shone through the doorway. "I still don't really know what it is though. Before anything else could happen, I woke up here."  
  
"That's quite a story kagome-sama. Sounds like you must have been pretty overwhelmed by something like that. I agree with Katasuki, for one to be able to retreat into their own mind and be able to interact with ones own soul. The individual must possess immense amounts of holy power and concentration. The gem is a mystery to me though, I feel its holy light radiating from it, almost like the shikon, but it still has its own glow."  
  
Sango, who had been holding back tears almost the whole time kagome was relating her story, was overcome with stress and anxiety for her friend. "Oh kagome-Chan!" she said as she dropped to the ground to tightly embrace the younger girl, "I'm so sorry kagome-Chan. It must have been a terrifying experience, and you were all alone. Its all my fault!"  
  
"Sango! Sango-Chan, its alright. It wasn't your fault, I was supposed to do this. I think that whatever I did, stopped my souls turmoil, and this crystal is the result of that."  
  
"Hateshi no Hari." Everyone's heads turned to face Katasuki as she spoke. "The what?" asked everyone except kagome. "The Hateshi no Hari...The Crystal of Fate! I remember now, my grandfather used to tell me the legend of the gem, but it was just a myth I thought, even my grandfather said it was only a fairy tale. A mysterious jewel that could allow one to see through the eyes of fate, and even to change the course of destiny."  
  
"Well my dear kagome, that so called myth is lying in the palm of your very hand. A jewel that controls all of destiny, holding such power it can change even the twisted course of ones fate. That is right."  
  
"But why...why is it given to me?" kagome asked, once again confused.  
  
"It was not 'given' to you kagome. You created it. The object you are holding is the crystallized form of your very aura. Inside, your miko and youkai chi can reside in peace. It houses them in a form that allows them to be equal. Your own powers keep them in check, to make sure neither has dominance. Since you hold them in your hand, you are their MASTER, not only a 'host'. You are the prophesied one that has always possessed the strange power over time and fate. You came back to the past, to complete a destiny that you were denied. That doesn't sound special to you? How many others have you known, or even heard of in legends that had this power?"  
  
She thought for a moment, "ha! I HAVE heard of one person of legend, 'The Megami Ningen', (Mortal Goddess) a human girl so pure, she had somehow attained certain powers of the gods, and could control time and fate, as well as other supernatural abilities." She stopped when Katasuki grinned again, and then rose a clawed finger to point at her. "Sound familiar anyone? That Ningen Goddess is you, Lady Kagome."  
  
Everyone's eyes went wide. "Kagome's a goddess!?" yelled Sango. Katasuki laughed, "Not really Sango, but she does have such strong spiritual abilities that she might as well be one. 'A human that even the gods themselves envied thus despised. Constantly the victim of the cruelty of fate, but eventually grew too powerful to even be held captive by its shackles forever.' I think that is how the legend worded it."  
  
Kagome looked from Katasuki, to the Hateshi, to inuyasha, to the others, and then back at her hands. "Wow, to think that I would have become the heroine of my own childhood bedtime story. Ha, I could only imagine what Souta would say if he found out, he always loved the story when he was a toddler." She smiled as she reminisced about her brother, and her own childhood. Her own, worry free and blissful life of years long passed.  
  
Everyone was still silent as they tried to process everything they had learned within the last half hour or so. Kagome began rubbing the gem with her fingers as it shined with its own inner light, Sango watched with one arm still around kagome, Miroku was in deep thought as was Katasuki and shippou. Inuyasha was the one to first come out and break the now peaceful silence.  
  
"I don't get it,..." he said with a totally serious look on his face.  
  
Miroku and shippou both met eyes and then tried to hold back a laugh, but soon found it was no use. Miroku started to bust up uncontrollably and slap the floor with his hand, while shippou rolled across the floor holding his sides in pain. "Inuyasha...oh boy, that was funny." Miroku said in a moment of regained composure, but he quickly lost it when he looked up to see a look of complete confusion on his friends face. "Ohhhhh...you sure do know how to ruin completely serious moments don't you yash?" cried shippou through tears from laughing. "The tension over whelms him shippou, he doesn't know how to be serious, hurts his poor little brain." Miroku said as he sat up to pat inuyasha on the head.  
  
Inuyasha "feh'd", smacked Miroku in the forehead causing him to role backwards, and then turned to stare a hole through the wall with his hands tucked inside his haori, as he blushed from embarrassment. Soon the girls couldn't hold it in any longer and clutched onto each other as the reseeded into violent giggles and squeaky cackles, not being able to hold back even though they knew it would upset inuyasha even further.  
  
Once everyone was done, they all sighed in unison from laughing so hard. Kagome felt happier than she had in weeks, she felt at peace. She was with her friends, having a good time. Her stupid souls weren't fighting anymore, and decided not to worry about what would happen after this. She was just going to lay back and enjoy life with her new family. 'If I control destiny, I will make sure nothing will disrupt our happiness from this point on...' she thought with a beaming smile on her face as she watched shippou tickle inuyasha to get the sour look off his face. Inuyasha couldn't help but start laughing, and soon started to tickle the young one back. He caught Kagome's gaze, and then gave her a goofy grin as shippou tackled him to the ground. 'I'll make sure neither of us ever experience another betrayal of fate again. I can finally be happy with you...inuyasha...'  
  
Suteki: yay! Cute! I had to lighten the mood at the end, it was all too serious for me, lol. The more I explained the gem and stuff, the more confused I got, lol. Hope you liked it! And once again, thanks for all the excellent help.  
  
Shizuka: next chapter, the group has lived in complete serenity for the past three weeks. But, of course the fun never ceases when your bunkin with a dog demon/miko of legend, who still happens to be a hormone raged teen. ;p  
  
Suteki: I'm sorry, but I'm in Las Vegas this weekend for the supercross, so I wont be able to write the chapter till next week...ahh! I feel so bad. Well, that gives you plenty of time for you all to wallow in anticipation of the next chapter (LEMON). So, till then, ja ne!  
  
VEGAS YOUJI, VEGAS!!!! (Vegas baby, Vegas) lol 


	15. Sakura Blossoms, and Dirty Dancing

Suteki: well, here it is! The long awaited filler chapter!! This is chapter doesn't have any lemon, maybe a dash of lime, but nothing bad, lol. Enjoy!  
  
Chapter 14: Sakura Blossoms, and Dirty Dancing  
  
After the formation of the Hateshi no Hari, the group tried their best to get things back on track. Three weeks had passed, and things were actually starting to feel normal again. Everyday they would spend doing something together, either going to the hot springs to swim, or going somewhere to have a nice picnic, followed by gazing at the clouds, then the sunset, finally the stars. That sort of thing, something that you would only experience in a fairy tale, they were living. They had never felt so relaxed in their lives, they were finally happy.  
  
Katasuki and shippou watched as the girls and the guys laughed and joked about random things, and smiled in humor. Shippou watched them longingly, and then looked up to his mother. "are you ready?" she asked her son, "no...but I guess this is as ready as I'll ever be. Lets just do it now." She nodded to the boy in her lap, and smiled at him, gaining a sad smile from him.  
  
Katasuki cleared her throat to get the rooms attention, and in a moment, all eyes were on her. "We have something to tell all of you." she didn't continue immediately, and kagome was starting to get a little nervous. "What is it katasuki? Is something wrong?"  
  
"No, nothings wrong. But...I have decided to take shippou with me, back home. I want to take him with me back to china to live at the shrine with me and the other miko's. I'm sorry to leave so soon, but the others will be worried if I don't return soon. And I'm sure they all would love to see shippou alive and safe. I want to thank all of you for what you've done for shippou, I don't know what he would have done without all of you watching out for him."  
  
Kagome was trying to hold back her tears as Katasuki walked over to her and knelt down to hug her. "thank you Lady Kagome, for taking my place while we were separated, I will never be able to repay you for it. I can only wish you to farewell along your path." Kagome smiled as she embraced her back, "you've already repaid me. You gave me the opportunity to take care of shippou, and you helped me find myself through the resent ordeal, what more could I ask?" Katasuki pulled her away, and only smiled. As she stood to hug Sango, kagome noticed shippou in the corner looking at her with tear filled eyes. She smiled sadly back at him, and opened her arms for him to come to her. He took the invitation in a flash, running to fall into her arms.  
  
"kagome! I'm going to miss you so much! I don't want to leave you...I'll miss you too much..." kagome was now crying as well, but continued to smile as she hugged the boy close. "its okay shippou. You have your mother now, you need to go with her. I will visit you I promise, I'll never forget you shippou." She whispered softly into his ear as she stroked the top of his head. He pulled away to look at her, his tear-glazed green eyes trying to memorize everything about the comforting face that he loved. Her own lavender/silver eyes took him in as well, holding nothing but comfort and assurement. He nodded to her, and smiled. "you promise to come and visit?" "yes, I promise shippou." She said as she leaned forward and kissed his forehead. He beamed, "yay!" he jumped out of her lap, and then ran to inuyasha, jumping into his lamp, rewarded by an "OOMPH!" "you better come to say hi to momma and me to you big jerk!" he said as she reached forward and hugged inuyasha in a bear hug. "hey you little runt!" inuyasha said as he pried him off of his rib cage, and roughed up his hair with his clawed hand. "you take care of yourself runt. And stop it with the crying shit! What did I tell you huh? A man can never let others see him cry. So suck it up, and act like the man I know you are." He said in a rough tone, although his eyes and smile betrayed him.  
  
Shippou smiled and then stuck his chest out. Everyone laughed, and then Miroku reached over to pat him on the should, "we'll miss you kid, we'll travel to see you sometime in the near future, you can count on that." shippou smiled back at him, and then ran over to Sango and hugged her too, "who's going to protect me from Miroku now shippou? I wont have my bodyguard anymore." She said in a fake pout. Shippou thought for a moment, "kagome can smell him from miles away now, she can take my spot. Okay kagome?" he said as he looked over to the youkai. kagome brought her hand to her forehead and then jerked it back down in a solute, "yes sir!" she said in a masculine voice, then they giggled.  
  
"So, you are leaving today Katasuki?"  
  
"Yes, we need to be back in time for the sakura festival. Although we live in china, all the shrine maidens are from Japan, and have all been looking forward to the event."  
  
"Ohh! Sounds like fun! I hope you have a safe journey then. And hope to see you soon." Kagome said to her as Katasuki and shippou stood in the threshold of the hut. "thank you, us too. goodbye and farewell to all of you." She turned to leave, but then spun back around. "oh! Miss Sango, lady kagome. I nearly forgot, I have some things from china that I would like to give to you as a thank you." Sango and kagome looked at each other, excitement twinkling in their eyes. Katasuki pulled her pack off her back, and then unwrapped it to exposed a couple of packages. She handed one to kagome and one to Sango. "for a special occassion." She said and then winked to them, then turned to leave again.  
  
"Arigatou" kagome and Sango said in unison. The others waved, "sayonara!" they all called out as they pair disappeared outside, and inuyasha and kagome felt them take off at great speed.  
  
They sat in silence for a moment, until Sango spoke up. "Sakura trees should be blossoming soon, I cant wait. I haven't been able to enjoy the spring events since I was a child." Kagome smiled as she got an idea. "Sango! we should have a big party to celebrate everything that happened! The trees should blossom with a couple of days, so we don't have much time to plan." Sango jumped up for joy, "yay! we had better get started then."  
  
The guys looked at each other confused, and back at the jumping girls who then ran into the back room of the hut with their gifts in hand, to start making preparations, then looked back at each other and shrugged.  
  
Within the next couple of days, Sango and kagome were frantic with their plans. They had plucked some of the new sakura blossoms and tree leaves, and put them in containers of salt to preserve them for sakura-yu and sakura-machi. Sakura-yu is tea boiled with preserved sakura blossoms, and sakura-machi is dumplings served in preserved sakura tree leaves.  
  
When the trees were in full bloom, the girls began cooking in the early morning, making enough treats to feed an army. They had shooed the guys outside and out of the way until it was time to leave. Finally, when the dumplings were wrapped, and the sakura tea was packed in thermosas, they smiled to each other, and then went outside to find the guys.  
  
They found them lazying around by the stream, shooting the breeze. They turned around when they heard the girls footsteps behind them. Inuyasha smelt the food and started drooling instantly, as well as Miroku. Kagome and Sango laughed when they saw the mens reaction to the food. Inuyasha jumped up and lunged at the basket that the smell of food was coming from. "sit!" inuyasha crashed to the ground at her feet. "come on, lets go to the valley to the north for the hanami. Miroku nodded, and inuyasha growled. "you mean we have to WAIT to eat?" kagome rolled her eyes, "oh come on inuyasha. We'll be there in no time!"  
  
Sango turned to kilala, who had followed the girls outside, and nodded to her. She burst into flames and transformed. Sango leapt onto the fire cats back, followed by Miroku. "alright, lets go Sango!" kagome cried out to her happily. "come on kilala, we're headed to the north." Sango said as the cat took off into the sky. Kagome took off after them, and inuyasha quickly caught up to her. His stomach gowled at him, and kagome laughed. "come on. I'll race ya" kagome said in a mischievous tone. "keh! Like you could beat me!" he said, cocky as usual. "ha! Just try to catch me!" she said, and in a blur, took off infront of him. Inuyasha stared after, a little dumbfounded, but caught himself and started to run full force. Kilala was left in the dust, as the two raced off towards their destination.  
  
Inuyasha was catching up to kagome, but very slowly. He saw her race up the side of the mountain, leaping from ledge to ledge, never losing momentum. Inuyasha followed quickly, a little more experienced than her, and soon was neck and neck. When they came to the top, kagome took a second to look at where she was. When inuyasha landed next to her, she leaped off the cliff without a second thought, hurtling to the ground. inuyasha didn't waste a minute in following, a little taken back by her braveness.  
  
As kagome plummeting to the ground, she looked at the valley below her. It was filled with sakura trees, and she spotted one clearing in particular that she liked. She pointed her body vertical towards the ground, and picked up even more speed. As she reached the tree tops, she tucked herself into a ball, and then spun around a few times until her feet came into contact with a limb of a tree. She bounded off that, and leaped into the clearing she had seen.  
  
She stood proud, and turned around to wait for inuyasha, who came thundering through the trees a few minutes later. "get lost?" she asked. Inuyasha tried to growl, but was too busy trying to catch his breath. "oi wench!...where'd you learn to move like that?" he said panting. She smiled at him, flashing her pearly fangs, "wouldn't you like to know?"  
  
Kilala, Sango and Miroku caught up to the, about ten minutes later and settled down in the clearing . kagome had laid out a white blanket from her time, and then helped Sango put out the food. The boys hurried to stuff their faces with the delicious dumplings, and gulped down their still warm sakura tea. They were finished in about 5 minutes, while the girls were watching the sakura blossoms fall to the ground in the breeze. They were nibbling their food, and sipping their tea.  
  
When the food was good and gone, the four of them watched the spectacle infront of them in awe, each one captivated by the beauty. The blossoms seem to be never ending as they fell to the forest floor, carpeting it in a pale pink. None of them said much, and they stayed like that until the sun began to set. When kagome noticed it was getting late, she turned to look at Sango, who was petting kilala's ear. When Sango noticed kagome, she winked in return, and then she stood with kilala in her arms.  
  
Kagome followed her as she walked over to where they had set their bags down. Inuyasha and Miroku watched them in confusion. "hey! Where are you two going?" inuyasha yelled to them as they picked up some things and then began to walk off into the depths of the trees. Kagome turned to face him, "it's a surprise. Now be a good boy and wait for us to get back." Sango whispered something to the neko in her arms, and then set her on the ground. she transformed and then laid on the ground between the girls and the suspicious guys. "kilala will make sure you stay put till we get back." Sango stated, and then walked with kagome into the trees, and the two were quickly lost from site as they disappeared into the pink curtain of blossoms.  
  
Inuyasha and Miroku hadn't been this curios in a long time, and fidgeted on the ground while shooting glances back where the girls had left them. Inuyasha couldn't take it anymore and jumped off the ground, "I cant take this anymore! Where the hell did they go?!"  
  
Before anyone could answer him, he saw a figure walking out from the trees in front of him. He focused as she came into view, and then he just gawked. There stood kagome, more beautiful than he had ever seen her before. She had half her hair pinned up in golden chopsticks, and the rest cascaded down her back. She was wearing something that was definitely foreign. It was a tight black silk dress that clung in all the right places, it had dark red cherry blossom designs in it, with a gold trim. The colors contrasted with her eyes, and made them shine more silver than violet.  
  
It was sleeveless, and went down to her mid-thigh, and had a slit that started just below the hip. The collar went to the middle of her neck, where it tied closed. The main thing he was looking at though, was the cut in the dress that started at her collarbone, and went down below her breasts, giving him a very nice look at her cleavage.  
  
As inuyasha gawked at kagome, Miroku was focused at something on the opposite side of the field. Sango stood at the edge of the trees, in something very much like kagome. Except, hers was a midnight blue, with silver patterns of cranes on it. The dress went down longer, just below her knees. She wore all her hair in a messy bun, held up by silver chopsticks, and had the most sexy smile on.  
  
Both the girls walked towards one of the guys, that's when they noticed that both the girls were carrying something. the scent hit Inuyasha's nose as kagome got closer, 'sake!!?' kagome walked up to him, and poured some of the clear liquid into a small sake saucer. "may I poor you a drink My Lord?" she asked as she handed him the drink, looking at him throw her lashes which, he noticed, had mascara on them. He gulped, and nodded as he took the offered drink. He tried to hide his blush as he caught sight of her chest again as he took the sake from her hand. He swigged it down immediately, and then watched as kagome walked passed him to sit on the blanket, swinging her legs to the side of her, and then patted the blanket next to her.  
  
Sango gave the now-mute-monk some sake as well, and watched in amusement when he didn't seem to know what was going on, and spilt it on his robes. The girls both drank some themselves, enjoying the taste of it. "that was a good idea kagome-Chan, putting the cherry blossoms in the sake." Sango told her friend, and kagome held up her saucer to her and gave her a dopey smile.  
  
They drank as they talked, mainly kagome and Sango since the guys still felt a little weird. "hey you know what!" kagome said," back at home, we used to watch dancers that would dance during the yozakur each year." "oh yeah?" asked Sango, not knowing where she was going with this. "can you guess who was the favorite dancer at the event every year?" Sango's eyes went wide, "no way! You're a sakura dancer?" kagome nodded proudly, "sure was!"  
  
"why don't you put on a show for us kagome-sama?" asked Miroku, who was listening very intently at the mention of a dancer. "well...I don't usually dance without music." Miroku reached inside of his robe, "not a problem." He said as he pulled out a small stringed instrument. "I've got your music right here!" he stated as she strummed the cords once. Sango jumped up and grabbed something out of her bag and then came running back with a metal flute that kagome had gotten her. "come on kagome! Put on a show for us!" she cheared happily.  
  
Kagome reluctantly got off the ground and walked infront of everyone, "I don't know you guys. I havetn done it in a long time, and I'm not going to know the tune your going to play." She said shyly. "stop making excuses and dance kagome! Any talented dancer will be able to feel the music, no matter how unfamiliar the tune." Sango encouraged her. "fine, alright." kagome said.  
  
She closed her eyes as Miroku and Sango started playing a semi-fast tune. She let it flow through her mind, through her entire body. As she drifted into her own world, she started to sway her hips to the rhythm. As she got more into it, she swayed them even more, and moved her torso along with them. She spun with her hips once, something she had learned from an American pop star Shakira, and rose her arms above her head and then slid them back down her body.  
  
Inuyasha watched in silent amazement as she moved in the most sensual movements he had ever seen. Her hair shined in the moonlight, and the she looked like a goddess against the heaven like background of shimmering cherry blossoms. Then he watched as she rose her arms again as the beat got faster, and tilted her head back and pulled the sticks out of her hair. She whipped it once as it all came loose. She opened her eyes and saw inuyasha watching her, and she got a strange yet strong urge. She didn't know if it was the sake, the music, or what, but she started dancing towards inuyasha. She swayed her hips as she walked, and spun a few times until she stood right above him. She continued to dance infront of him for a few moments, then turned and pulled him up off the ground. He stood, and his eyes went wide as she grabbed his hands and placed them on her own hips.  
  
"Sometimes the dancers have a partner when they perform. I've never had one, and I'm curios to know what its like," she explained quietly. She gyrated her hips against his, and he felt himself go hard instantly. She was facing him at first, her eyes closed as she continued to move to the beat that flowed through her mind. She turned in his arms, making sure his hands never left her hips.  
  
As she could feel the hardness rubbing against her lower thigh, and felt her body heat up as the scent of Inuyasha's arousal wafted past her nose. Her body was already heated from the sake flowing through her blood, but now she was on fire. She quickened the motion in her hips and her upper body as she slowly slid herself against his body and closer to the ground. When she was knelt down, in one fluid motion she came back up, rubbing his groin region with her ass, causing inuyasha to hiss in pleasure, and her to shudder in return.  
  
'What is she doing to me?' he asked himself as his love continued to writhe in his arms. Soon he found himself moving her hips along with the rhythm himself, pushing his hips a little harder against her. Kagome smiled, "I'm glad your getting into it too inuyasha." She whispered in a low and slightly raspy tone. Her voice almost made him lose control. She turned again to face him, and rose her hands above her head again. As she brought them back down, she rested then on top of his head, and absent mindedly started to stroke his ears in the same rhythm her hips moved against his, and he could feel the heat from her core on his own inflamed skin. His eyes burst open, and he bit back the strong urge to moan, and ravage her body right then and there. He was extremely glad though, when the tempo started to slow down, and the song came to a close.  
  
He stared at her, and then let her go, wandering off into the forest, while the others cheered for kagome's performance. Kagome turned to thank inuyasha for the dance, but found that he was gone. ' Hum, wonder where he went off too. man, I've never felt like this before. Every nerve in my body is on fire, what happened? I wonder if inuyasha felt it too.'  
  
"I'll be right back you guys, I'm going to go cool down in the stream over there." And she raced into the forest. As she headed for the stream, she shed herself of her dress, shoes, and under garments. She couldn't escape the heat that was coursing through her body, not even as the brisk wind caressed her as she ran. As the small lake came into view, she reached up and ripped the lacquered chopsticks out of her hair, and did a swan dive into the cold water. She shivered when the water enveloped her skin, stinging at first. 'this water is no doubt runoff from the snow on the mountains in the valley. Baka, should have guessed that before you dunked your head in.' she chastised herself as she felt a headache come on from the severe cold.  
  
She didn't leave the water though, she settled near the shore, and stretched out, ignoring the temperature. she was beginning to relax, and sighed when the heat in her veins cooled. Unbeknownst to her though, she had an audience.  
  
Inuyasha stood downwind of the water goddess after seeing her naked form fly headfirst into the waters he too was seeking. Her tresses wildly fluttering behind her once she set them free, only to be captivated once more by the cold water. 'damn wench, now I'll never get a chance to cool down.' He growled to himself. but his mind quickly shut up as he watched her emerge from the water, snapping her head back, causing her wet hair to whip from the water and land on her back. 'why must she continue to torture me?'  
  
As kagome continued to enjoy the tolerable water, she felt a creatures aura stir behind her. She turned to see inuyasha making his way towards her, his eyes holding an unreadable desire in them. "inu...yasha?" she said as she stood, completely forgetting her lack of clothing. He continued to make his way over to her until he stood mere inches from her. "kagome..." he said huskily. She felt the heat instantly return to her body, and groaned inwardly at her loss of success.  
  
As he inhaled, he smelt the scent that he loved all too much, the scent of juniper and the night on a full moon. "inuyasha? What are—"she started, but he couldn't take it anymore, he reached forward and grabbed the back of her neck, and pulled her in to him. His lips met hers in a searing kiss. She was shocked at first, but as soon as she felt his tongue run along her bottom lip, she quickly gave into the heat that was pooling in her stomach and granted him entrance. As soon as her mouth opened, he snaked his tongue into her mouth, searching out hers. He teased it and she gasped as she felt his warm tongue stroking her own. It was his turn to gasp when she responded a bit shyly and caressed his tongue with her velvet one. 'Gods she tastes good.' He thought as he continued to battle with her tongue.  
  
They finally separated for air, and stared into each others eyes. Kagome saw nothing but love, lust, and want in his eyes, the same was found by inuyasha. "Kagome. Will you be mine? Will you be my mate?" he asked, his eyes in a silent plead with hers. She thought for a moment, and smiled at him as tears formed in her eyes, "of course I will, I would love nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you inuyasha," she said in a broken whisper. He smiled before claiming her mouth once more, slowly lowering her to the ground.  
  
Japanese:  
  
Hanami: flower viewing  
  
Yozakur: evening flower viewing  
  
Sakura-yu: tea with salt preserved sakura blossoms  
  
Sakura-machi: dumplings wrapped in salt-preserved cherry tree leaves  
  
Suteki: okay, you all can fill in the blanks after that, hehe. This chapter is actually has a better ending than the filler chapter on mediaminer.org. if any of you are interested in reading the lemon chapter, go to www.mediaminer.org , and look up the author 'Miko no Suteki', yes, it's the same there as here. Enjoy and don't forget to review! Ja ne ;) 


	16. The Morning After

Chapter 15: The Morning After  
  
The stillness of the forest was disturbed, as a creature that resided in its depths, began to stir.  
  
Kagome winced, as the sun rose over the trees, and shone through hitting her eyelids, dragging her from her slumber. She moaned as she slowly opened an eye, trying to take in her surroundings. 'where am I?' she thought when she didn't recognize anything. She opened both eyes, and tried to sit up, but a strong arm pulled her back down.  
  
She sucked in her breath, and held it a second. She looked over her shoulder, and then turned in the strangers embrace. She was met with the sleeping face of her inuyasha, and she smiled as the memories of last nights rituals flooded back to her. She lifted one hand, and gently stroked the side of his cheek. 'gods he's adorable when he sleeps,' she mused to herself.  
  
Her hand wandered up to find his ear, and she gently started stroking it. The young hanyou moaned at the touch, and a small smile formed at his lips. "kagome" he whispered, and his eyes began to flutter open. He looked up to meet eyes with the source of the sensation, and smiled again. "ohayo gozaimasu, koibito" he said as he brought a hand up to cup her cheek, "indeed it is my mate" she said as she leaned in and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips.  
  
Kagome sat up, and looked around her, fully taking in where she was, since it was dark when she left, she really didn't know where she was. She noticed then that she was still nude, and got up to find her clothes. She found them, in a pile a few feet away. She put her dress back on, as inuyasha still lay in his spot, watching and smiling.  
  
As Kagome's hand grazed over her shoulder, she felt a strange warmth. She looked down, to see, what looked like a bite mark on her shoulder, and it was giving off a strange glow. "nani? Inuyasha?" she asked as the warmth resided in her body.  
  
Inuyasha's smile widened, and he got up and walked over to her. He was still naked and kagome couldn't help but notice him, and blushed as a result. "don't be shy kagome, we are mates now, you should get used to seeing me like this. This, my darling," he said, indicating the mark on her shoulder, "and this" running his hand over the scars on her chest, "are proof of that."  
  
"this is the marking isn't it?" kagome asked, a smile growing on her perfect lips, "then its official, we're mates! We're as good as married! Oh inuyasha I'm so happy" kagome said, lunging herself to embrace inuyasha, who stumbled back a few feet. Once regaining his balance, he returned the embrace, and kissed the top of her head. "that's right kagome, now you're mine, and the mark will show all other youkai that you are off limits."  
  
'although I have no idea how this marriage thing works.' He thought.  
  
After their embrace was through, they decided to finish getting dressed, kagome being worried about Sango being alone with Miroku for too long. Inuyasha only smirked at her, knowing full well that Miroku's company was welcomed last night by a certain Taijiya.  
  
back at the clearing, a young man was stirring to consciousness. Miroku opened his eyes, and squinted as he was assaulted by the suns morning rays. He felt something heavy upon his chest, and looked down. There lay the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, the woman of his dreams, sleeping as a goddess, with her long ebony locks sprewed across his chest, and over the blanket they lay on.  
  
Just then, the young woman opened her eyes, and looked up to see brown ones boring into her. "ekk! Hentai!" she screamed as she sat up and rose a hand to slap the assaulter. As her hand sped towards the mans face, she suddenly stopped, recognizing the handsome face that calmly stared back at her. "Mi- Miroku?" she whispered.  
  
"Good morning, my dear Sango. Sleep well?"  
  
Sango just stared at him, totally complexed. As a breeze went by, she shivered, and then blushed dark crimson. 'oh kami no...I'm not...' she thought as she slowly looked down, and was then greeted by a glimpse of her bare breast. "eekk!!!" she screamed as she fell backwards, groping for anything to cover herself. She found something, and quickly wrapped it around her exposed flesh.  
  
Miroku laughed, "are you feeling okay my dear Sango? you look a little, heated up. Wow, Dejavu." He mused.  
  
Sango looked on at him horrified, never noticing his lack of clothing. Then it all came back to her. After kagome and inuyasha had mysteriously disappeared, Miroku and her had shared some more drinks, and laughed together for hours. And then...'oh no, I didn't' she had confessed her true love for him, and they had spent the night endlessly expressing that love. The dull ache in between her legs confirmed that.  
  
Miroku watched as different emotions screened over his lovers face, indeed she was remembering what had happened between them last night, he could tell by how red she was becoming. "There's no need to feel ashamed my love. Last night was pure, and willing. It was not perverted or of animalistic urges. You and I made love, plain and simple."  
  
Sango knew it was true, she remembered it all clearly now, although at the time her mind was blurred by the alcohol she had consumed. 'if it wasn't for the sake, this wouldn't have happened, I would never have been able to tell him all that. wow, I should have taken up drinking sooner!'  
  
Miroku moved in closer to her, her eyes sparkled and a genuine smile played at her lips. He embraced her, and began rocking her. "I'm so happy Miroku. Last night was the happiest night of my life, sorry I didn't remember sooner." Miroku smiled as he buried his face in her soft hair, "its okay my love, sake can do that to you. You can be assured, Sango, that I have never enjoyed myself more than I did last night, I feel complete with you. I have never felt so fulfilled in my life."  
  
Sango was overwhelmed with her happiness, she felt tears falling down her face. "ohhh Miroku."  
  
The couple stayed like that for a while longer, until they heard footsteps coming from the forest. Sango's head darted up, feeling the presence of very strong youkai. but her face immediately went to an all new shade of red, when she noticed the questioning eyes of her youkai friend, and the smirk on the hanyou's face. 'oh no...'  
  
Miroku followed her gaze, and looked up to see inuyasha and kagome approaching them. He calmly covered his waist with the same garment the Sango was wrapped in, which happened to be his own robe, and smiled back at the other couple. He noticed the way they affectionately had their fingers laced together, and gave a knowing grin.  
  
"so, how was your night? You get lost or something? we began to worry."  
  
Kagome blushed, but Inuyasha's smirk only grew, "oh, our night was fantastic, much resembling yours eh monk?"  
  
Sango hid her face in the robes, 'oh kami this isn't happening. My friends walked in on me while I'm naked with the Houshi! Of course they know what happened. But wait! What does he mean, resembling ours? He doesn't mean...oh gods, kagome!'  
  
Sango jumped up, forgetting about her new husband, and pulling his covering up with her, running to kagome. Miroku desperately tried to cover himself, from the now hysterical hanyou. Finally grabbing the picnic basket and placing it over himself.  
  
Kagome fell onto the ground with the force of the other girls impact. "kagome! My little kagome is finally a woman! Its about time you two!" kagome was now laughing, although she was being crushed, at her 'sisters' actions, "Sango! what do you mean about time?! How long have you 'been a woman' Sango?!" she teased. Sango blushed again. "yeah well..erm." she stammered.  
  
Both the guys started laughing at them as they messed with each other. After inuyasha and kagome had allowed Sango and Miroku to get dressed, they started walking towards the boundaries of the valley. The girls were chatting it up, nothing in particular, they would share that stuff when the guys weren't around, and the guys were doing the same. Although, Miroku would slip into the gutter every once in a while, rewarded with a glare from kagome, who was the only one of the two girls that could hear him.  
  
Once they reached the cliffs that walled the valley, the monk and Taijiya climbed onto Kirara, while the two dog demons put their load onto the large neko youkai. "alright you guys, we'll meet you back at the village, drive safe!" kagome called as she and her mate started running up the side of the cliff. "drive? What's that mean?" Sango wondered allowed as she and her companions flew to the top of the large mountains.  
  
Sango was lost in her thoughts as she guided Kirara to their destination, when she felt a familiar caress assault her bottom. WAP "but Sango my dear, you had no problems with it last night!" Miroku questioned as he rubbed his sore face. Sango sighed, "perhaps, but its not appropriate at all times monk. Groping in bed, and groping in public are two different things, remember that will you?"  
  
Miroku rubbed his chin in thought for a moment, "ahh! I understand you my love, so that's why all the beautiful ladies became so irate after that. hummmm, okay my love. I will cease my actions of groping, as long as I can grope you every night for the rest of your life." Sango blushed and sucked in her breath. Miroku felt her go tense, and he burst into laughter again. WAP!  
  
as inuyasha and kagome raced over the top of the mountain, and started their way across the flat fields, they ran side by side, glancing at each other from the corners of their eyes every once in a while. Kagome couldn't help but smile the entire time. Kagome was now wearing her normal day-to- day clothing, the sleeveless kimono with black pants underneath. The top had pulled apart a little at the top, exposing the tops of her breasts. Inuyasha noticed this, and didn't miss the opportunity to stare a little.  
  
His thoughts drifted back to the night prior, as soon as his eyes caught the three markings adorning her perfect chest. 'you're finally mine kagome, all mine.' As his thoughts began drifting further and further, as to what his life would be like now with kagome as his mate. He grinned as his mind went into Miroku mood, 'keh, great mating from now until the day I die, kagome is NEVER gonna leave the cot, I'll make sure of, OOMPH!!' CRACK, SMASH, WHACK!!  
  
Kagome stopped and looked back when she heard something quite painful, and the loss of her mate. At once she doubled over in painful fits of laughter. "oh my-oh my-god inuyasha! Wha-what the hell laughter happened to y- you?!!"  
  
Inuyasha moaned in pain as he pull his body out from the splintered and demolished tree, "what the hell?.." he groaned, and then blushed when he realized that he was thinking of bedding kagome and ran into a tree because of it.  
  
"inuyasha! You ran into the one and ONLY tree in the entire field!" kagome squealed as she hadn't regained from seeing inuyasha with a mouthful of oak. "keh, shut up bitch, I swear you're gonna be the death of me."  
  
Usually kagome would have gotten mad at his little name for her, but something inside of her made her heart warm at the sound of the word from his lips. 'huh, that's odd. Usually I would have his face buried in the dirt for dessert, but I don't feel the urge this time.' "inuyasha? Why do you always insist on calling me a bitch?"  
  
Inuyasha blinked for a moment, and then blushed again. "well, emm. That's what my father called my mother, if I remember correctly. Amongst inu- youkai, the term 'bitch' is a term of endearment used by the male for his mate."  
  
"for his mate? But you've been calling me that for years." she wondered aloud. Inuyasha turned from pink to red, "yeah well, umm...you know, I never thought of...you see..." he stammered, like a little boy trying to explain why his homework wasn't done..."...what's with all the questions all of a sudden? Lets keep moving." He said as he raced towards her, and fluidly scooped her up into his arms.  
  
She just stared up at him confused for a moment, and then smiled as she realized why he didn't want to answer the question. 'he's always thought of me as his mate. I was a companion that he cared for and protected, he must of called me that out of instinct, never realizing it.' with that new revelation, she leaned up and kissed the side of his cheek. Inuyasha looked down at her with a questioning look, but when he saw her smile, he couldn't help but smile back.  
  
"inuyasha?" kagome asked in an airy voice as she continued to stare into his amber eyes.  
  
"yeah kagome?"  
  
"watch where you're going before you run both of us into a tree, will you love?" kagome asked sweetly.  
  
"keh!" was Inuyasha's only reply, as he sped towards their home, returning his eyes to his path, to see another misplaced tree that he would surely have contacted with. 'damn wench, I swear she's gonna kill me.'  
  
Japanese:  
  
Koibito: lover, sweetheart (ohayo koibito = good morning my lover/sweetheart)  
  
Suteki: sorry it took me SOOOOOO long to update, really, I'm VERY VERY sorry. I've been extremely busy with my job, AND finals at school. Ugh. Okay, I'm going to be updating a lot more from now on, I promise! ;) thanks every one that patiently waited for the update, although I did get one or two emails from people asking if I had died, or if I just forgot I had a story in the works, lol. sorry guys ;) okay, also sorry that this was so short, but I wanted to get the transition chapter outta the way, so I could start with the rest of it.  
  
Next chapter: Powers of the Legendary Jewel of Fate. Kagome's gonna test the powers of the crystal she almost forgot she had, the Hateshi no Hari!! 


	17. Powers of the Legendary Jewel

Chapter 16: Powers of the Legendary Jewel of Fate  
  
After all had made it home, safely, it was about 3 in the afternoon (they slept in ) and kagome and Sango had made everyone their lunch (although it was the first meal of the day for them). Each couple sat side by side snugly, and ate mostly in silence. Kagome and inuyasha had caught a couple of rabbits on their way back, so the group were having a pretty large meal.  
  
Inuyasha plopped backwards as soon as he took his last bight. "man, ever since the runt left, there's been food left over after every meal!" inuyasha noted. Kagome sighed, "yeah I know. I guess we are still adjusting to only having to cook for four." Everyone kept silent for a moment. "I wonder if shippou-Chan is enjoying his new life in china, with his mother." Sango broke in. "I'm starting to miss Katasuki as well, she was very kind, and very knowledgeable" Miroku added, rewarded by a questioning stare by Sango, "whaat? Sango my dear, she has children! I am not that kind of a man. I am serious though, if it were not for her vast knowledge of the books, then who knows what would have happened to kagome-sama."  
  
Kagome's mouth made a small 'o' at the mention of the past ordeal, 'I had almost forgotten about the whole thing!' she thought as she reached a hand up to her forehead, where the Hateshi no Hari was sunken into her skin.  
  
FLASHBACK  
  
Katasuki approached kagome, who sat staring at the shimmering crystal in her hand. "here kagome, it is best you keep this safe, close as possible" she stated, as she extended a hand to the other demoness. Kagome took the offered hand, and stood up, facing Katasuki. "I know this all to well Katasuki-sama, but where do you suggest I keep it where there is no threat of it easily being stolen?" Katasuki thought for a moment, "I am not quite sure..." she couldn't finish the thought before kagome broke in, "oh! I remember now! In the story book from my time, it shows the Megami Ningen with the crystal on the top of her head, I could never tell if it hung from something, or if it was a part of her...the shikon no tama was a part of my body, so it makes sense that this would be no different."  
  
"well there you go! Here, hand me the Hateshi no Hari, I will place it so that it is properly centered. No woman of great legend can be running around with a lop-sided accessory, I will not allow it." she chuckled, as did kagome. She handed her the jewel, and the kitsune placed it above her brow, perfectly centered. "okay now kagome-sama, I assume you know what to do, right?" she questioned, and kagome nodded. She had done this before with the shikon no tama, so she knew the process well. She closed her eyes, and cleared her mind so all she saw was the jewel, and then she drew its energy towards her, until she felt it connect with her flesh.  
  
"Very good, all done! It looks great on you, it contrasts nicely with you hair and eyes."  
  
"Arigatou for your help Katasuki" kagome smiled.  
  
END FLASHBACK  
  
After the girls had cleared the mess from lunch, they gathered their things and headed to the stream for a bath, Kami knows they need one. Each stripped of their clothing and dipped into the cool water, both shivering on contact. They shifted uncomfortably, not really sure of what to talk about. Both knew what they wanted to ask each other, but felt awkward asking. They soon grew tired of the silence though, both being outspoken, "so how was it?" they both asked at the same time, resulting in a girlish giggle from both.  
  
"you go first, Sango." kagome insisted. Sango blushed, "fine, I will. To put it simply it was nothing short of fantastic, I have never felt closer to heaven than I did in his arms last night. My mother always told me that losing ones virginity was very painful, and said it was a good thing that I would not be experiencing it. you see, since I was a firstborn-female and a warrior of the clan, I was not supposed to marry, because I could not fight if pregnant. So only the males could marry, or the youngest females in families, who were already forbidden to battle."  
  
Kagome looked at Sango with a sad look upon her features, as Sango shared with her something that she had never told any of the group. 'it must have hurt Sango to know that she was never to love anyone, that must be why she stayed so far from the Houshi, and seemed so inexperienced with men.'  
  
Sango noticed the look on her friends face, and regretted changing the subject. "but you see, that it turned out that my mother was wrong! It wasn't a painful experience for me, but the most blissful one I have ever had! Maybe now I could even restore my clan with Miroku! Things have turned out for the best, I'm finally truly happy! I have a hope for the future, and it's a very bright one." Sango said as she could barely contain herself from jumping up and down with glee.  
  
Kagome smiled with her, "I'm glad Sango, that's fantastic, I wish that fate will continue to shine upon your future." As soon as the words left her lips, she gasped. 'fate, future...I wonder...' she thought as she felt the gem upon her forehead begin to grow warm in energy. "Sango come here." She calmly stated, Sango nodded and scooted closer. "what is it kagome?"  
  
Kagome reached a hand out to the other girl, and place it on her heart. She then moved her other hand so it was right infront of her own chin, the index and middle finger extended, and slightly crossed over each other, and the thumb pointed upright while the other fingers were limp. 'a spell casters stance?' Sango wondered at the familiar position of her friends hand.  
  
Kagome kept silent for a moment as she retreated into the depths of her mind, seeking the power of the Hateshi that she knew would come to her, 'got it'. Sango almost jumped when kagome began speaking again, even if it was a quiet tone. 'what's she saying?' then Kagome's words grew just over her whisper, and Sango could clearly make it out.  
  
"The one telling from the commencement the finale, the one telling from long ago, things yet to come. The eye of fate, seer of expectations. Let me glance into your future." Kagome chanted over and over. Sango felt a warmth extending from her chest where Kagome's hand lie, and wondered where in the world she came up with that chant, and what she was planning on doing with her new and untested powers.  
  
Kagome stopped chanting as an onslaught of images flooded into her minds eye. They were fogged at first, but the more she concentrated, the more she could make out. She saw Sango with Miroku, infront of one of the homes in the demolished slayers village, although, the houses were all refurnished. And then she could hear sounds slowly surfacing, she could here the laughter of children, there were two of them. From what she could make out they were both boys, and when she got a glimpse of them, she smiled to herself. They were two boys, twins obviously, although ones hair was darker than the others. Both had bright brown eyes, and both were in slayer's clothes.  
  
Then the images fled as she came out of the trance. Sango was still looking at her friend questioningly, and she couldn't help but smile back. "What is it kagome? What did you see??" she asked eagerly. Kagome shook her head, "I can not tell you exactly what I saw, it is the law of fate. But I can tell you that your future will be a very happy one, oh yes, and I hope you like children."  
  
"What?!" Sango asked, not quite sure she heard the last part right. "What? I said you'd have a happy future."  
  
"No, the other part, I could have sworn you mentioned children."  
  
"I said no such thing, you're hearing things Sango." kagome said as she smiled innocently.  
  
"So you're gonna play that way huh?"  
  
"Don't look at me like that Sango, what are you doing, oh no, Sango!!" kagome screamed as the older girl lunged at her and tackled her into deeper waters.  
  
Once Sango let her up for air, kagome stood up, gasping for air, her hair in a mask over her face. She picked the locks away from her nose and eyes, and glared at the now laughing Taijiya. "why you!" kagome yelled as she splashed water at the other girl.  
  
Sango sputtered out water, and then splashed back. soon they were engaged in a heated water fight, and the sound of their shrieks and laughing filled the surrounding forest, filtering all the way back to the camp where the guys lounged in the hut.  
  
"Sounds like the girls are having fun ay inuyasha?"  
  
"Feh, you can say that again. If they're not careful, their gonna drown each other with excitement."  
  
"Aa, but inuyasha, that means we'd get to go rescue them, and pull their naked and wet bodies from the water." ""wap!!  
  
"and what may I ask, was that for inuyasha?!"  
  
inuyasha glowered at him, "from this point on, you are NEVER to imagine my mate in such a way, or I will make sure that yours will never be very satisfied. Got it Houshi?" he threatened as he flexed his claws in his face. Miroku gulped audibly, "calm yourself my friend. I can assure you that I only have eyes for my dear Sango."  
  
"good, or else you'll be living the rest of your life as a eunuch." He said as he smirked at him, rewarded by a weary laugh from the monk.  
  
Now Miroku was definitely scared to ask his friend how his night with the aforementioned inu-demoness was, for fear for his happiness. There was however, a way to get no the same track without touching the subject of the girl. "so inuyasha, was this your first time?" inuyasha stiffened, and almost choked on his own tongue. "well..umm...sorta...but how bout you monk, are you the man you've always made yourself out to be?" inuyasha retorted.  
  
"my good man, of course I am, how could you ever doubt me? I may be a monk, but I have certain duties as a man you know."  
  
"keh! Bullshit! I could smell it all over you since the day I met you, you were as much a virgin as I myself! Haha, how does it feel monk? I bet you feel about as big as Myouga right now huh?" inuyasha said, trying to hold in his laugh, which was becoming increasingly hard at seeing the look of horror on the other mans face.  
  
Miroku didn't know what to say, 'ah crap...well this sucks...come on, come back comeback! Hah!' "either way, I kept Sango begging for more! How bout you? Was kagome 'tired' after one go?"  
  
Inuyasha wanted to rip the other guys head off, but knew how the monk was, and restrained himself, figured he could get him back. "in fact, you're right monk, she was completely knocked out after one go, and so was I for that matter. You see, you're missing one very important thing. The initial mating ceremony in youkai's, is also a literal binding of the soul, and both mates reach unimaginable levels of power and sensitivity, that it is impossible for even the strongest of youkai's to do it twice on the same night. However! After the first time, both partners can keep going for at least two days straight, no problem."  
  
Miroku had nothing to say to that, his friend had clearly beaten him. Just then, the door flap burst open and the two laughing girls stumbled inside.  
  
"You two weren't drinking again were you?" inuyasha questioned.  
  
"Hehe, no inuyasha! We're not drunk. How could we? Sango and Miroku here finished off the booze last night! Hehe"  
  
"Miroku come here" kagome called, getting another suspicious look from both inuyasha and Miroku, who was inching over towards her. "don't be scared, I don't bite." "liar..." inuyasha said, loud enough that they almost didn't catch it, and kagome blushed again.  
  
Once she had Miroku situated infront of her, she positioned her hands as before, and started chanting again. "The one telling from the commencement the finale, the one telling from long ago, things yet to come. The eye of fate, seer of expectations. Let me glance into your future."  
  
"what is she doing to him Sango?" inuyasha asked in deep confusion. "she's looking into his future, looking at the course that fate has lined out for him. Or at least, that's what she told me." Inuyasha returned his gaze to his now silent mate, and didn't notice Sango fidgeting uncomfortably.  
  
After all the images played through her head, she released the monk and smiled at him, patting him on the head. "good boy!" she turned to look at her friend behind her, not noticing the 'wat-the-hell' look on the monks face. Her eyes met Sango's, and she winked at her and gave her a thumbs up. "I told you Sango!" "I never doubted him kagome, it was you who insisted!."  
  
Both the guys looked on, completely dumbfounded. "do inuyasha now kagome!" Sango suggested excitedly. Kagome looked over to her mate, and thought for a moment. "no Sango." "what?" "I said no, I don't want to look into his future."  
  
"but why not kagome?" inuyasha asked, sensing his mates distress through the marks connection. He could feel her aura stir with anxiety. "because...because inuyasha, looking into your future, will mean seeing my own as well. And I don't think I'm ready for that. and for some reason, fate has been cruel to you all your life, I am not sure why you were destined to be with the 'Eye of Fate', or whatever I am. But I'm just scared to know the truth. Maybe I will one day, but not yet." She said, finally looking up at him.  
  
Inuyasha searched her eyes for a moment, and then decided not to push it. he had noticed as well, that his life was never a blessed one. But he never thought of why he would have been so clearly destined to be with a chosen one of legend, maybe he just shouldn't think too much about it.  
  
for the next few hours, both couples spent the evening in the hut, snuggled up against each other as kagome described to Sango and Miroku what weddings were like in her time. Sango was VERY intrigued, and Miroku liked to see her smile, although he was really thinking, ' great, now she's going to want all these things kagome is telling her, and who knows how much that's going to cost us. Oh well, anything for my dear Sango. and besides, I have a feeling that a whole lot of ominous-looking-clouds are going to be appearing soon.'  
  
after kagome and Sango had finished planning their wedding, Sango finally realized something. "hey kagome, why aren't you going to get married to inuyasha? I mean, you are a human."  
  
"WAS a human Sango, I am no longer. Both me and inuyasha are inu-youkai, and being mates is as good as being married. And I know from my new instincts, that the male is dominant. As a human would take the husbands last name, I take on his heritage. So even if I was human when me and inuyasha mated, then I still wouldn't have had the right to ask for a marriage. That's okay though, the mating ritual was more than I could have ever asked for."  
  
"but what about the beautiful diamond ornament you said the husband was supposed to give you, as a sign of your love, and as a sign that you belong to him?  
  
"oh you mean this?" she said as she moved her clothes away so she could see the marks on her shoulder and chest. "it may not be a diamond, but, I think I've had my share of unique jewels, and this is more from the heart, than a showy display. It also carries a special scent, that lets all youkai know that I belong to him. So as you can see, its basically the same thing, but on a different level."  
  
Sango thought for a moment, "I guess you're right kagome. I myself wouldn't beg the Houshi to go through a large expensive ceremony. Besides, I don't think I would have wanted anything that large anyways. Maybe just a small ceremony with you, inuyasha, Kirara, and Myouga. Those are the only people I know."  
  
"Sounds good to me Sango! besides, the both of us are as good as married already! So why worry about the details, aye?"  
  
"Right" Sango said as she moved forward to embrace her friend, and both were soon crying on each others shoulders.  
  
the rest of the night was pretty uneventful, except the fact that it had started to rain in the late evening. The four of them ate dinner, which was leftovers from lunch. And then the couples settled in the hut. Usually inuyasha would have slept outside, but because of the rain, all four had to fit in the small hut. Each couple shared their sleeping bags, they laid one out on the ground (completely unzipped) and used the second one as a large comforter.  
  
Everyone fell asleep comfortably that night, feeling warm and safe in the arms of the other. But something awoke kagome some hours after going to bed. It wasn't a noise, or any kind of scent, just a strange feeling that wouldn't let her sleep. She finally opened her eyes, giving up on trying to doze off again, and was greeted by the serene sleeping form of her mate. She studied his face intently, taking in every curve, the shade of his lips, the complete calmness of his features.  
  
The more she stared, the more the feeling of restlessness grew in her. Finally, she just couldn't resist it anymore. She maneuvered her hand in- between their bodies, trying not to disturb him. She placed her hand over his heart, and moved her other hand under her chin. She closed her eyes, and willed the power to come. 'The one telling from the commencement the finale, the one telling from long ago, things yet to come. The eye of fate, seer of expectations. Let me glance into the future that is ours.' She chanted in her mind.  
  
Then, the images came. She saw a little girl, about the age Sango's boys appeared. She had long silver hair held in a high ponytail, and dark silver eyes. The sweet smile never left the little girls face, and she was sitting in the lap of an older man it appeared, she couldn't make out the face though.  
  
Then she heard the tauntings of a boys voice, followed by the entry of a small inu-youkai child. He had shoulder length dark chrome hair, like Kagome's, held in a small braid at the nape of his neck. The boy started rough housing with the older girl, who cried out in surprise. Then the male who's face she couldn't make out, "hey you two! Stop messing around! Souta, get off Suteki! You know how your mother gets when you come back with battle scars." ...'inu-inuyasha?' she thought as she finally saw the mans face. It was inuyasha, only he appeared to be a little bit older, barely noticeable in his features, but by his tone of voice, and the way he held himself, he was at least 10 years older. Then she saw herself walk into the picture, and embrace the two children. And then embrace her mate.  
  
All of a sudden the visions fled, and she thought it was over. But then the sounds of screams came into her mind, and a new vision flew before her minds eye. She saw herself fighting an enemy, who's demeanor she did not recognize, it was a woman, she could tell that much from her demonic laugh. She saw herself being attacked, with what appeared to be a miko's arrow, but for some reason, she herself wasnt moving out of harms way. Then the most horrific scene came before her eyes, as she watched as inuyasha took the blow, flying from out of no where, and...the vision ended, but she could still here the screams of her future self, calling out to her mate, 'NOOOOO, Inuyasha!!!!!'  
  
As the vision faded, a new one began. 'no! I've had enough of this! Let me out, I don't want to know my future!' slowly, the vision retreated before it began, and kagome opened her eyes. She waited for the focus to return to them, but it never came. Then she realized that it was because her eyes were overflowing with tears. She wiped them away quietly, and then focused in on her hanyou's face again. Anything that would reassure her that her love was still alive.  
  
He was still there, and still appeared to be sleeping. As she calmed, she focused in on his aura. It was calm and still, he was fast asleep. 'my love, what am I going to do? Was my vision correct? Is there any way to save you from this horrible fate I witnessed?' then she remembered a verse from the story book of the Megami Ningen, 'The chosen one of fate, the condemned of the gods. Always giving, forbidden to have.' She never understood what the line meant, since the story was a happy one. But it must have been an authentic verse from the original legend.  
  
'there has to be a way to change what I've seen, or else the powers of fate would never have given me the power to control it, right? I will save you inuyasha, I will not let you die. I was sent to you to change your life, to heal your faltered string of fate, and I will NOT fail you.'  
  
With her self reassurance, she felt ready to take on this new task, as soon as possible. 'which will have to be in the morning because I am bushed! Man, this whole Eye of Fate thing is really tiring.' She leaned in and kissed inuyasha sweetly on the lips, although it wasn't what she wanted at the moment, she wanted to take out her anxiety in a much more heated kiss, something more desperate, and passionate.  
  
Just then, a strange warmth awoke inuyasha. The mark was burning on his shoulder, almost painfully. He awoke to find his mates lips against his, and saw her aura flaring with a whirlwind of feral emotions. He pushed his lips into hers, and pulled her closer to him. Kagome moaned into the new sensation, it looked like her silent plea would be answered. She pushed back harder, and inuyasha titled her head back, and Kagome's mouth opened, inviting him in. he took it without a second thought, and kissed her as deep as he could. her desperateness was intermingling with his own soul. After a good minute, the kiss ended, and inuyasha pulled her away from him, so he could look into her eyes. "what was that about?" he whispered to her in a tone that was inaudible to humans, as he searched her sad eyes for an answer. She only shook her head, 'it was just a bad nightmare, more like a night terror. It disturbed me, and I just needed to feel you, to make sure this was real."  
  
He kissed the top of her head, "its real kagome, don't worry. I'm here, and ill always be here to protect you. So stop being stupid, and go back to sleep bitch."  
  
Kagome gave him a sad smile, and kissed his forehead, "thank you koibito. I love you." He smiled back, and touched their foreheads together, "and I love you--itai!" he hissed. "what is it?" kagome asked worriedly. "Damn! That jewel of yours is on FIRE, what the hell?" she looked down into the depths of the cover, hoping he wouldn't know why it was reacting. "I don't know, maybe its because I was scared, my aura was flaring because of it, maybe it got hot as well. I don't know." Inuyasha thought for a second, "yeah, you're probably right. Get some sleep kagome, you look tired."  
  
"Alright, thank you inuyasha, I don't know what id do without you." She said, pain lacing every word, as she closed her eyes, quickly being claimed by the darkness of sleep, thankfully, a dreamless one. Unbeknownst to her, her mate didn't fall asleep, as quickly, he still lay awake and perplexed at the strange actions of his new mate. 'What's wrong kagome? What don't you want to tell me?'  
  
Suteki: alright, so what you think?! You light the new plot twist. Yeah yeah, I know I gave Kagome's daughter the same name as my pen name, but aye, I like the name alright?! Any of youz got a problem with that? no? that's what I thought. Great, now I'm in angry-Italian mode. Hehe, alright, hope you guys are happy with the double update, hope it makes up for my recent absence. Okay, ill see you all soon! (  
  
Next Chapter: What Else Does This Thing Do? Kagome goes into the woods to meditate, she can feel that there's more to the newly arisen situation than meets the eye. 'Why did it show me so much? And why do I feel the need to press on?' 


	18. So, What Else Does This Thing Do?

SHOUT OUTS!!!!!  
  
mm.org reviewers Kag14: what? Is something confusing??? Lol, let me know if something isn't clear  
  
Essie: thanks for the review! I can always count on you to review after my updates, glad you like it!!  
  
Aitu: lol, yep I sure did! Pretty funny eh? Don't worry, I wont discontinue the story for my own selfish gain, hehe. I'm happy to know that you're enjoying the fic! I know, I like the tattoo thing too, I wanted the mating ritual to be unique for my fic, instead of repetitive.  
  
Million Knives (inutaishou2005) – yay! thanks for the reviews taishou! It makes me feel bad for not moving as fast on your fic as I would like, especially now that I lost my internet at home, I barely have time to do ANYTHING! Thanks for the comment on my lemon, its my first so I'm excited to know that so many people thought it was good! Hope you liked the updates! ;)  
  
Kikyo2713: you liked the part where kagome turned into a inu-youkai? cool! That was my main focus on this story. The way I got this started, was the basic idea of turning her into a demon somehow! Thus was born Nigatsu no Hoshi!  
  
Hanyoukagome: thanks for all the reviews hanyou, hehe, yes as you can tell I'm alive and well, thanks for your concern, lol. hehe, yeah, citrus blossoms, you liked that? oh yeah, and also, thanks for the review on fanfiction.net, I don't know how many other of the readers got a chance to read the alternate ending. And yes, I did use a couple of your ideas in the fic, you know which ones ;) keep reviewing and hope your happy with the updates!!  
  
Essie: oh yeah, I'm sorry I didn't put a Miroku/Sango lemon in there, I didn't really see how to fit it in without it being too long. But don't worry! I'll put a lemon in there for them sometime in the near future!!  
  
ff.net reviewers  
  
Captured Moon: no! I actually haven't seen that episode, but I have seen pictures from it, looks hilarious, cant wait to see it. I wanted to bring the happy level back up for atleast one chapter. And to answer your question (although I already emailed you) Miroku and Sango's kids names will be revealed later on, at least for everyone that's reading on the site, I know you already know them. But I want to put that in so its revealed at its own due time. Sorry to all those that wanted to know them now! Don't worry, all will be revealed soon ;)  
  
Koneko8844: thanks for the support!!  
  
Nethira06: don't worry! I'll update a lot faster from now on, I'm aiming for at least 2 chapters a week, perhaps even more! But I'm working on getting my new fic (Missing You) started.  
  
And thanks to everyone else that's reading, even if they're not reviewing! At least you've gotten this far and that's all that matters!!! Hehe. ;) okay, here's the next chapter!!!!!! Enjoy ;)  
  
Chapter 17: So, What Else Does This Thing Do?  
  
Kagome woke up before anyone else in the hut, although she had spent most of the night in-between the realms of unconsciousness and reality, and not gotten much sleep at all. She carefully maneuvered her way out of Inuyasha's arms without awakening him, and over the bundle of body limbs under the other couples sleeping bag. Once she was far enough away from the hut, she let out the breath she didn't even realize she had been holding, and headed off towards the forest.  
  
As she made her way along the fogged over path to the water cannel, her eyes drifted lazily from the small trout in the glistening water, to the waking birds, and to the glow of the rising sun. She enjoyed the feeling of the moist soil under her bare feet, and inhaled deeply the smell of the wet earth. She had always loved the smell of rain, and the cool moist air it left behind. A few minutes later she entered into the forest, and continued walking, not really having any specific place in mind.  
  
Some how, her feet had carried her straight to the sacred tree, and she stared in wonder at the large time tree. For some reason, this tree always seemed to calm her, she didn't really understand why, since it didn't hold to many fond memories in this time. This was the tree that Kikyou had sealed inuyasha to, it should have brought rotten memories of the corrupted miko, but Kikyou was far from her thoughts at the moment.  
  
She immediately leaped high into its branches, searching for the limb she knew inuyasha favored. She found one which held the hanyou's scent, and settled in comfortably. She knew why he liked it, not only could he see the well, the village, and the sunrise from here, but, the arch from the trunk to the branch was perfect for the back, and quite pleasant.  
  
The young demoness watched as the sun inched its way over the far mountains, a look of sadness sketched its way into her features the more she inhaled the musky scent of her lover. Kagome closed her eyes, and watched the scenes of her vision, as she remembered them in the order she was shown. She smiled at the sight of her and Inuyasha's 'pups', trying to relish in that happy prospect. But she scowled as the scene of inuyasha taking a fatal blow for her, inevitably forced its way infront of the happy scene, and the laughter was quickly replaced by screams of horror and pain.  
  
She clenched her teeth, and closed her eyes tight. 'no...there has to be a way to change this...I wonder...what would happen if I were to take that blow, and protect inuyasha?' she thought desperately.  
  
Suddenly, she heard a loud rumbling coming closer and closer to her. As she was about to open her eyes, the sound was upon her, and a wave of images filled her mind. She saw the battlefield that was in the vision last night. But now, she was standing, still wounded, but standing. As the strange woman charged her weapon, she saw inuyasha to the side, lying on the ground, trying to pull himself to stand. 'ka-go-me' she heard him whimper. She knew he was going to block it, but she couldn't let that happen. She watched as the future inuyasha made a move to jump infront of her, she watched her future self, use what had to be the last of her strength as she yelled, 'Osuwari!, and the inuyasha fell to the ground.  
  
She then watched as the evil light consumed her future body, and she was destroyed, nothing left. She heard inuyasha scream out her name, and then watched in horror as her killer turned her attention to the inuyasha who was desperately trying to fight the spell. 'you'll never hurt us again' came a strange yet familiar voice. 'no, why...why did you kill her, and not me?' inuyasha asked, now clearly sobbing. 'Because...she was a stupid wench for ever loving you...and so was I...now, where are those annoying brats of yours?'  
  
Inuyasha desperately tried to get off the ground, but he wasn't fast enough. She watched as the evil persona found the children who were being protected by a holy barrier, and then consumed all the light with her dark aura, and nothing was left, except the echo of the painful shrieking and dying gurgles of her children.  
  
Then the vision fled from her, and she was left completely horrified, and trembling with hatred and the feeling of loss. Defending inuyasha wasn't an option, the enemy was clearly after her and the children, so maybe inuyasha wasn't at danger. But either way, her children were, and she couldn't sacrifice them, even if they were not born yet, or even conceived for that matter.  
  
'What if...what if the fight was avoided somehow, like, what if we never stumbled upon this person?' she thought to herself, and closed her eyes to await the next vision, which would hopefully be on a lighter note than the past ones. But nothing came, nothing at all. 'what? Avoiding this isn't an option? Who is this person, why is she trying to destroy my future family? And that voice, those words. What did she mean, I was a fool for loving inuyasha, as was she? Who IS she? It cant be Kikyou, Kikyou has been long gone, and she would never harm children, Me, yes, but she has always loved children. So she's crossed off the list. It sure as hell isn't Sango...but who else knows inuyasha?'  
  
She sat in the tree alone for at least another hour, going over different scenarios, but no more premonitions would come to her, and she began to become angry. There was no other clues that her powers would give her, it was either, sacrifice your children and yourself...or see if inuyasha can survive the attack. The vision had never actually shown her who else would die if she allowed inuyasha to protect her, and this only puzzled her further.  
  
Back at the hut, a certain hanyou awakened as a strange feeling consumed him. He felt anxious and worried, and woke up on the verge of tears, 'kagome'. Immediately becoming alert at the strange awakening, he reached for kagome, but she wasn't there. He expanded his senses, and told them to find his mate. He found her aura, it was in deep distress, and was wavering in anxiety.  
  
In a flash of red and white, inuyasha was out the door, forgetting his haori in the bed, and took off in search of his distressed miko. He followed her scent to his forest, and was becoming more and more curious. He made a beeline for the Goshenboku, and jumped straight towards his favored branch.  
  
'Then its settled, I will leave the matter to itself. Clearly fate does not want me to figure this out, it wants me to come to the outcome by myself. The matter has certain significance for it to have showed me so much of it, unlike the other visions. The events are not to take place for at least another decade, so perhaps in the meantime, I will find the answers to these questions. But until then, I do not see any reason to fret over this, and there is certainly no reason to alert inuyasha to the matter.' She smiled to herself, finally convinced that she had at least 10 more years of peace and 'happiness' infront of her, and she would be sure to make the most of it.  
  
'Speak of the devil...' she thought as she felt his presence extremely close, and opened her eyes to see his staring right back at her. '..and he will appear'  
  
"Good morning yasha, what brings you here?" she asked, smiling at him. He raised a brow at her, "I might ask you the same question. I was awoken just now, by your aura. Tell me...why is it that I woke up wanting to scream, feeling like I had lost something? Eh bitch?"  
  
She smiled at him again, although inside she was chastising herself for forgetting that the bond between them would alert him to any strong emotions that she was feeling. "I'm sorry koibito, I was just thinking of the nightmare I had last night, since I woke up only a little while ago, I guess it just still seems real. Its silly I know, I just don't have too many of these scares, I'm not used to it."  
  
"You're gonna tell me that you, the girl who fought numerous demons, and defeated Naraku is easily frightened by a little dream? I don't buy it, what are you hiding from me kagome? Something's been bothering you since last night, and I don't think it was the boogie man."  
  
"Boogie man? How do you know about that?"  
  
"Your brother told me...hey! Don't try to change the conversation bitch, tell me what's wrong."  
  
'He's actually worried about me? He looks mad, but I can feel his aura radiating with worry and hurt. He's hurt that I wont tell him the truth, he thinks I'm hiding something.' she thought to herself, scared that she didn't know how to get out of this without lying to him, and not telling him the truth either. 'Guess ill have to get as close to the truth as I can.'  
  
She looked up into his golden eyes, which immediately started to search her silver ones. "why do you always study my eyes like that inuyasha?"  
  
His eyes held their spot and studied her for a moment. "The eyes are the window to the soul, and yours has always been clear to me, I can read you like a book by just looking into those beautiful eyes of yours. And what they're telling me right now, is that you've been hurt by something, and are trying to decide on whether to tell me or not. Why wont you just tell me kagome?! I'm your mate and I have every right to know what troubles my own bitch, now spill it!."  
  
She wanted to hide her eyes from him, he really could read her like an open book, and it kind of scared her. But she couldn't leave his eyes, they mesmerized her and she was sucked into their golden warmth. She took to heart what he said about them being the window to the soul, and searched his own. His were well guarded, but she broke through quickly. She read the same hurt and worry in those eyes as she read in his spirit.  
  
She sighed in defeat before she started, "okay inuyasha, you win." She diverted her eyes before continuing, staring off into the distance. "i...I had another vision last night inuyasha...and it was no where as joyful as the ones I had read off of Sango and Miroku, it was much worse. It held more meaning than the ones I had searched for, it held a mission for me, which came with many difficult choices. The future I saw scared me, and I was worried what I would do about it." she paused to calm her voice which she felt begin to crack.  
  
"Vision? A vision of what? Of whom? What did you see kagome?"  
  
She shook her head, "that, I can not tell you yash, I'm sorry but I can't. I've gone over it again and again this morning, searching for the solution, and it will give me none. For this, I can only choose to allow fate to continue unblemished until that time. If I were to tell you what I saw, who knows what that would cause, Fate could punish us if I were to do that. I'm sorry inuyasha, the last thing I want to do is keep things from you, you have to understand that."  
  
He studied her face, his brow scrunched together in a worried and confused appearance. "You...you don't trust me kagome?"  
  
"No! No inuyasha, I trust you with my life! This has nothing to do with trust, it has to do with my mission. Even I have limits, and this is one of them. Don't worry inuyasha, the events are not to happen for another decade at least, so we have time to work things out." She ended, smiling warmly at him. He held a thoughtful look on his face, and kagome brought a hand to his cheek.  
  
He leaned into her touch, and closed his eyes, sighing heavily, "Okay kagome, I think I understand. I...I just hate to see you hurt. You deserve to be happy. What I don't understand is why you've been destined to live with such burden on your shoulders. It seems that no matter what, something's always there to bring you down. But...but you're always smiling, you've never lost hope, and you've always been there to laugh disaster in the face. Your spirit is strong...that... must be the reason you were chosen for something like this." He said, his features turning serious as he thought it over.  
  
Kagome gave him a sad smile, she was happy to hear him tell her what he saw in her, but was saddened at the reminder that her life really didn't make much sense. "I love you inuyasha, and that's all we have to worry about right now. Miko, human, demoness, guardian of fate...none of these matter to me, I just want to live my life as happy as possible, for as long as time permits."  
  
She said, almost in a whisper, and ended as she leaned in and gently kissed him on the lips. The kiss was sweet but long, both trying to comfort each other. When they both felt the others aura relax, they parted. Inuyasha switched places with kagome, and he held her close to his chest as he leaned up against the smooth bark of the tree.  
  
He watched the sun as it finally rose, and kissed the top of his mates head. Kagome watched the rising sun intently, drifting in and out of her thoughts. 'That's it, the sun will rise tomorrow, and the next day. And as long as that happens, I will be content with what I have, for however long I have it, that doesn't matter. I have this now, and I wouldn't trade it for the world.' She told herself as she smiled.  
  
Inuyasha squeezed her lovingly when he felt her aura glow with a sudden joy, and was happy to know that she was feeling like her normal self. 'I'm here for you kagome, just keep smiling and everything will be okay. You can get through whatever is thrown at you, I have faith in your ability to turn a hopeless situation into your victory.'  
  
Sango awoke as she felt the warm rays of the sun peep through the door mat and warm her face. She turned to find Miroku still asleep, a death grip around her waist. 'I'm surprised that all my clothes are still on, maybe he's not the pervert that we all thought he was.' "mmm, Sango. that feels good, don't stop." He mumbled in his sleep as he pushed his hips against her leg, reacting to whatever he was dreaming.  
  
Sango's brow twitched, 'what the...I guess I spoke to soon.' She sat up and stretched out her stiff muscles. She took that time to look around the room, and found that inuyasha and kagome were missing. 'hm, wonder where they went.' Then she blushed as a thought came to her mind, 'wonder if they couldn't stand not being able to be alone as new mates, and went to find some, eh, privacy. Maybe its about time that me and Miroku left to settle down in our own place. I mean, this was a nice place to rest between battles, and was a good home for an elderly miko. But for two couples, it just wont work.'  
  
"Miroku, Miroku wake up." She whispered as she nudged her husband softly. He only moaned, in the pleasure of his dream or annoyance she couldn't tell. Either way his stubbornness was getting annoying. She reached for something and found his staff, she picked it up and wasted no time testing whether she liked using this instrument better than her hiraikotsu. jingle jingle, whack!  
  
"owww!"  
  
'hm, I like my weapon better, feels more solid than this stick.' "Get up Houshi, the sun shows that it is early morning, we should get up. Unless you plan on staying in bed all morning."  
  
The monk stopped rubbing his throbbing head to send her a mischievous grin, "well, that depends Sango. Are you going to be in that bed?"  
  
She growled in frustration, "Miroku! This is kagome-chans home! How can you think of doing that on the floor of your best friends one-roomed home?"  
  
"Well, if you word it that way, it makes it sound all the more appealing." He said as he reached for her backside.  
  
She gave him a death glare, and he promptly closed his mouth and pulled back his hand. "Okay Sango, I understand. You're right; it is rude of us to intrude on inuyasha and kagome-sama like this. Maybe, maybe its time we found a place of our own. Then we could start our own family, and leave Inuyasha and kagome to their privacy, which they rightfully deserve. They have shared their home with us out of the kindness of their hearts, and I believe we shouldn't take advantage of their, well, Kagome's generosity."  
  
"Exactly my thoughts Houshi. But, where do you suppose we go?"  
  
Miroku sat in thought for a moment, and then smiled to himself. "I know just the place. Pack your things Sango, we will leave as soon as you like."  
  
Sango smiled in pure joy, she would have a home of her own soon! And she could begin the life she had always dreamed of, with the man she loved. "Oh Miroku, thank you! Where are we going? I would like to stay here at least another day, I want to say goodbye to kagome and inuyasha properly."  
  
He smiled back at the young woman, "It's a surprise, and of course we can stay longer, whatever you wish my dear Sango. Now hurry and get dressed, maybe we could make them breakfast before they wake up."  
  
"Wake up? But they're already gone. I didn't hear them leave, but they weren't here when I got up. I don't know where they could have run off to."  
  
Miroku smiled his wicked grin again, but decided to keep his thoughts to himself, "I see. Well, in any case it would be respectful for us to prepare the meal, as a show of our thanks. And after which, we can tell them the good news. Does that appeal to you Sango?" she shook her head and moved to embrace the man, "I love you Miroku, thank you."  
  
"Anything my dear, I love you."  
  
As both couples continued their activities, an unexpected visitor was making their way to their home, with some very intriguing news that would indeed change the meaning of every-day-life for one of the two couples.  
  
Suteki: mwuahaha, cliffy!!! Lol, sorry for that, just thought it would be nice to have one of those for a change. Hope you liked the chapter!! Yay, 3 within the span of what, 5 days is it?? Goody goody! Okay, review and tell me what you think of the developments! ;) Please and thank you! Oh! And by the way, incase any of you were wondering what happen to Shizuka (who was indeed a real person) she's been on vacation in England (our homeland) the lucky #$%, and wont be back for a few months, ::sniffle sniffle:: so yeah, she's abandoned me on this one, hehe. Oh well! So for all those who missed her charm, just letting you know she's not dead either, lol.  
  
Next Chapter: For a Change in Scenery...moving can be fun! Unless you have to fight for your home. 


	19. For a Change in Scenery

Chapter 18: For a Change in Scenery  
  
Sango flipped the fried eggs over that were cooking in the pot infront of her, humming too herself. "Sango!" she heard someone say to her and spun around, no one. "Sango-sama over here." The voice came again, but Sango couldn't see anyone. "Down here Sango," came the now aggravated voice. Sango looked down at her side to see Myouga the flea sitting on her knee, all four arms crossed as he waited to be seen. "Myouga-jiji? What are you doing here?" she questioned.  
  
"What is it Sango?" Miroku asked as he walked outside. "Myouga's here Miroku." She announced. "Oh, Myouga-jiji. What's the occasion?" he asked. "Well monk, I was actually looking for the Lord and me Lady Kagome, do you know where I can find them?"  
  
"What do you mean? You can find us when we're battling in another land, but you cant find inuyasha in his own village?" Sango questioned. Myouga scratched at the back of his head, "yes well, you see. I headed for the hut first, and even though didn't sense inuyasha, I smelt food, so..." he chuckled, and the couple sighed. Sango pinched off a bit of the egg and gave it to him, and he quickly engulfed it. "Now to answer your question Myouga, inuyasha and kagome left a while ago this morning, they didn't say anything so I cant imagine that they are far off from here." Miroku stated.  
  
"Ahh, arigatou Houshi, I will continue my search for them, I have some interesting news for them. Although I don't think they deserve it for not informing me of their plans to mate, but oh well. So is the duties of a Lords vessel." He sighed as he hopped out the door and out into the street, still mumbling to himself. Miroku and Sango shrugged to each other, and continued making breakfast.  
  
Myouga followed the always-tasteful scent of his master's blood into the forest.  
  
Kagome was slowly dozing off in Inuyasha's arms when she screeched in surprise when inuyasha smacked her thigh. "Inuyasha?" she asked as she turned around to see inuyasha-holding Myouga in his hand. "What is it Myouga? Passing through and stopped in for a snack?" inuyasha asked sarcastically.  
  
Myouga popped back to original size and then sat in the palm of Inuyasha's hand, folding his arms and closing his eyes. Both inuyasha and kagome stared at him, waiting for what was so important that Myouga had to search them out. "Sire, I do wish that you would have alerted me to the fact that you planned to take kagome on as your mate, but since you did not, this shall be a little more difficult for all of us."  
  
"Inform you that I was going to mate kagome? I'm sorry, but I'm not the one that can see into the future, that's Kagome's field." Inuyasha responded, looking between the flea youkai and his mate, who stared back with a confused look on her face.  
  
"Yes, I've heard all about Kagome's passed changes, but that is not why I am here." Myouga interrupted. "Well then get on with it dammit!" inuyasha yelled.  
  
Myouga sighed again, "Well my Lord, I'm not quite sure how to put this, or where to begin. So I'll just get right to it. You have taken kagome as your mate, and since you are of royal heritage, that would make her a Lady. Furthermore, you are the first of the two siblings to have mated. Although Sesshoumaru has the rights of first born, in youkai society, the first heir to take a mate, also takes the throne. So in short, you and kagome are now Lord and Lady of the western lands."  
  
Inuyasha almost choked on his own tongue when Myouga finished his sentence, and kagome just stared wide-eyed, not even breathing. "We are the rulers of the Inu-Youkai lands? But, but I thought that Sesshoumaru-sama resided in the family castle. How do we rule the lands if the castle is already inhabited?" kagome asked.  
  
"Well that is simple Lady Kagome, we simply have to persuade Sesshoumaru to vacate the castle." Myouga said simply.  
  
"Coax my brother to LEAVE the castle, yeah, right, that's gonna happen. Myouga, you of all people should know that Sesshoumaru is not one to give up something that would have a direct impact on his stupid pride and heritage."  
  
"Lord Sesshoumaru, as well as Jaken, knew of this law. Your brother chose not to take a mate, when he knew that you and kagome were bound to bond. I can't explain it, but I only know that he made no move to prevent this."  
  
"I don't get it...it wouldn't be hard for Sesshoumaru to find a mate. I mean, he IS royalty, and quite handsome, and overlooking his aggressiveness, he looks kinda sweet..." kagome began to ramble, but was stopped by the growing thunder in Inuyasha's chest.  
  
"You checkin out my brother kagome?!" he asked through clenched teeth. Both Myouga and kagome just stared at him for a moment, and then burst into laughter, and inuyasha just 'fehed'.  
  
"So anyways myouga, when does this whole overtaking the crown thing have to take place?" kagome asked as her laughter subsided. Myouga grew serious as well, "I am sure that the board of Youkai Society has already been informed of this, so if you do not make a move to take the throne, they will come and do it for you, and it wont look nice." Myouga informed them.  
  
Kagome and inuyasha thought for a moment, inuyasha still caught up in the fact that he was being FORCED to be part of his heritage. He had always wanted to be excepted by the youkai society that had shunned him from birth, why would they be so eager to make him reigning Lord?.  
  
Kagome was the first out of her daze, and she clapped her hands together, startling both Myouga and inuyasha out of their thoughts. "Well then, it looks like we have some packing to do inuyasha, we should leave tomorrow morning, I want to get a chance to tell Sango and Miroku the news, and part properly." She said, almost cheerfully.  
  
"Aye we do Lady Kagome. What do you say my Lord, are you willing to accept this new position?" Myouga asked inuyasha.  
  
Inuyasha looked down to Myouga, and kept silent for a few moments. "Yeah, what the hell. If it pisses off my jack ass brother then I guess I'll do it." he said and smiled at kagome, flashing his fangs with his goofy grin. Kagome smiled back and kissed him on the nose. "Alright, lets go! I can't wait to tell Sango that I'm royalty!" kagome squealed before turning to leap from the tree.  
  
Inuyasha sighed but quickly recovered with a smile as he leapt off the tree in pursuit of kagome. Myouga attached himself to inuyashas prayer beads and hung on for dear life as they raced back to the village. Inuyashas mouth began watering when the scent of a freshly cooked breakfast caught his nose, and his eyes sparkled as he licked his lips. He passed by kagome and crashed through the door of the small hut, almost taking out miroku in the process.  
  
"Ahh! Inuyasha! You trying to kill me?" miroku gasped.  
  
Sango laughed as her husband began dusting himself of the dirt inuyashas entrance had kicked up. "So inuyasha-chan, im guessing that either myouga found you, or you caught wind of the food and ran him over." She laughed as she coughed on the still settling dust in the air.  
  
Kagome came in shortly after giggling at the expressions on everyone's faces. "Shut up sango, im not that predictable...now, where's that food I smelt?" inuyasha retorted as he searched around for the source of his desire. He found it sitting on a small table on the floor, and started for it, only to be pulled back by the collar of his haori. "Aaaagg! Kagome, what's the deal? Im hungry!"  
  
"Inuyasha, you're so rude." She said, yanking at him again, then turning to sango, slapping another smile on her face, "you made us breakfast sango- chan? What's the special occasion? I was on my way to make YOU guys breakfast." Kagome asked, although still unable to remove the smile from her face.  
  
"Well actually, we had some exciting news to tell you guys, and figured that we would discuss it over a nice warm meal." Sango replied with a gentle smile.  
  
Kagome clapped her hands together, her smile only growing wider, "great! So do we, you go first though."  
  
"No you go first kagome, I want to know what myouga had to say." Sango said.  
  
"No you go first."  
  
"No you."  
  
"No you"  
  
"You first kagome, I insist."  
  
"Sango, really, I don't want to be rude, you go first."  
  
Both the men sighed, and inuyasha growled along with his stomach.  
  
"Fine" "fine" they said in unison.  
  
"We're moving!" both girls screamed at the same time, then stopped their cheer to look at each other. "You-you is moving? Where?" kagome asked, and sango smiled. "I don't know yet, houshi says it's a surprise, so I guess I'll have to wait and see." Kagome looked to miroku and smiled. "So where are you two moving off to all of a sudden? Does this have something to do with myougas visit?" miroku asked inuyasha.  
  
"Yeah, we're kickin my brother out and movin into the castle, orders of the Youkai Society." Inuyasha stated like it happened to him every day, and kagome jumped with excitement. Sango and mirokus jaws dropped, unable to reply. Sango was the first out of her daze, and trampled kagome to the ground, "my little kagome is royalty!!!!" she kept screaming. "But-but how?" miroku asked.  
  
"Can we PLEASE eat first? Im freaking starving over here while you guys are screaming." Inuyasha complained. "Fine, we'll eat and talk." Kagome said, and the group, especially inuyasha, dug into the still warm eggs and meat.  
  
Kagome and myouga explained everything to miroku and sango, and kagome kept begging miroku to tell her where he was planning on taking sango, but he wouldn't budge, 'as is the training of a monk,' thought kagome, 'strong and stubborn as a tree.'  
  
By the time breakfast was long over, the girls finally stopped talking. The two of them had spent almost 2 hours dreaming of what their new lives were going to be like, kagomes only worry being sesshoumaru, who she would need to figure out a plan for.  
  
The remainder of the day, the four of them lounged around the village, strolling to random places that they had grown to love and call home. They watched the sunset, and then counted shooting stars together, just like old times. The four of them fell asleep under the night sky, and woke up as soon as the soon appeared over the horizon, and then they watched the sun rise until it was about half way to high noon.  
  
Kagome and sango helped each other pack, while the guys waited patiently outside. Kagome shoved everything into her yellow backpack, and sango put everything in the middle of a large piece of purple fabric, which she then tied on her back to form a Feudal-Era-style-backpack.  
  
Kagome and sango hugged for what seemed like forever to inuyasha and miroku, who were happy with a simple handshake and a pat on the back. The girls parted and wiped away their tears. Kagome and inuyasha watched the other couple fly into the distance on the back of kirara, and were soon on their way to the west.  
  
About 4 hours later, the couple arrived at the boundaries of the western lands. Inuyasha was hesitant to cross, but was finally persuaded by kagome, who simply dragged him a good mile until he finally gave in and followed. Inuyasha was beginning to feel a bit strange, considering that he hadn't sensed his brother at all yet.  
  
Kagome continued to run with a smile on her face, and a skip in her step/leap as you could say. Finally, the castle came into few, and she stopped. Inuyasha didn't hesitate to stop as well, and stood a few feet behind his mate. She turned to face him, and he glared as she smiled. "you didn't happen to already know that this was going to happen, and just FORGOT to tell me, did you kagome?" he questioned. "why I would never inuyasha! To tell you the truth, I didn't have the slightest clue that this was going to happen, this sure does put a sudden twist in things though doesn't it?" she asked, 'and will also add to my list of suspects for the horror I foresaw.' She added to herself.  
  
Kagome turned back to face her new home, 'but I promised myself I wouldn't worry about that,' she thought, "for now, its just a change in scenery for all I care." She said outloud. "what was that kagome?" inuyasha asked.  
  
Kagome didn't look at him, but kept her eyes focused ahead, "I said, your brothers here." She said quietly as she jerked her head in the direction of the new arrival.  
  
Suteki: mwuahaha, cliffy again! I know this was short, sorry. Im writing this at work, and my breaks ending, so I'll have to do my shout outs next chapter, I do, however, want to dedicate this to Inuyahsha-fan from the AS boards, this wouldn't have gotten done today!! Hehe, ;) and thanks to all my reviewers, ill reply to everyone next time, as I already said. Till then, id love to hear what you thought!!! Reviews make my world turn, lol. ;) tata! 


	20. My Palace, Our Home

Chapter 19: My Palace, Our Home  
  
Inuyasha promptly shut his mouth, and followed the direction of Kagome's hand. Sesshoumaru stood before then, stalk still with his emotionless golden eyes towards them, once again his face unreadable. As a breeze picked up, the Demon Lords silver hair billowed elegantly with it, almost giving his appearance the perfect touch. Kagome smiled to herself, she herself always having an amount of respect for her brother in law as it were.  
  
"come to meet us Sesshoumaru? How kind of you." Inuyasha scoffed sarcastically. Sesshoumaru made no response to his younger brother, yet kept his eyes fixated on the demoness standing next to inuyasha. Inuyasha raised an eyebrow at the awkwardness of his brother, and followed his gaze to his mate. "uhhh, Sesshoumaru? This is kagome, I'm sure you could tell by her scent."  
  
Sesshoumaru nodded, "what do you take me for brother, of course I would recognize the scent of my own blood, it is her form that baffles me. I heard that Inuyasha's wench had become demon, but I didn't quite know what to expect, forgive me kagome-sama." He said coolly.  
  
Kagome's eyes widened for a second, 'kagome sama?' "my lord, why do you refer to me with respect? You, eldest of the Inu-Demon tribe, are not expected to show such to the bitch of your brother." Kagome questioned.  
  
The noble lord replied with a small smirk of his own, "My Lady, even this Sesshoumaru can plainly see that you are not just the bitch of my brother, your blood smells of power and nobility, such as yourself deserves nothing less." He stated in his usual smooth voice.  
  
'wow, this certainly is turning out differently, he was supposed to show up here and fight us, not compliment me on my nobility.'  
  
"I surely know the reason of your sudden attendance, you were sent to take the throne, were you not, brother?" he asked the still stunned and confused inuyasha. "uh, well, yeah. Myouga told us that this is the direction of the council. Why else would I return to this horrid home of mine?" he replied.  
  
Sesshoumaru smirked at him again, "ah yes, so I see that you still have an issue with your own blood line. well, It appears that you will have to be getting over that soon my brother.  
  
"hold on, you mean to tell me, that you're not going to fight us for this? You're just going to leave us the key and leave in peace?" kagome asked in disbelief. Sesshoumaru turned to her again, "I see no reason for me to fight. I am no stubborn child, I understood from the beginning that if inuyasha was to find a mate before I, then I would have to step down. I always knew that it would be so, and I never fought to stop it."  
  
"Now if you will excuse me, I must gather Rin, Jaken, Ah and Un so that we may depart. The domain is yours brother. I bid you farewell Lady Kagome, if anyone can keep inuyasha on a leash, I have faith that it would be you." He said as he solemnly bowed to kagome and nodded to his brother, who was now scowling at the little 'leash' comment.  
  
As he turned to leave, and his cloud of youki appeared, kagome stared on with a deeply confused look on her face, till a sudden, obvious idea came to her mind. "Sesshoumaru-sama! Wait a second!" she called out as she stepped towards him.  
  
His cloud dissipated as he looked at her from over his shoulder, "nani?"  
  
"Sesshoumaru..." she began as she glanced over to her mate, who also had 'nani' written all over his face. "if this castle is as grand as it appears, why is it that there is not room for more that two youkai? as far as I know, royal families all live in the same domain. I've hated the thought of taking over your home since the beginning, especially with Rin and all. If it is okay by inuyasha and yourself of course, I would be happy to have you stay with us." She stated meekly.  
  
"NANI?!" were the responses of both inu brothers. "live in the same residence as HIM? Kagome dear, I can barely stand to live in the same era as this asshole, let alone live with him." Inuyasha burst, and Sesshoumaru simply looked on, clearly wanting to retaliate but holding his tongue.  
  
"inuyasha! It's a big house! Are you saying that you would rather put little Rin on the streets instead of giving her and your only brother a home?" she asked incredulously, giving him the eye. Inuyasha gulped at the look on her face, a look that only the primmest of woman could manage.  
  
He looked between his elder brother and his mate, and then stared at the ground for a while. Images of how his life as a toddler was came back to him, images of him and his brother playing in the courtyard of their home. He looked back up to the palace in the distance and sighed, "whatever, do as you like kagome. If I could tolerate him before, I'm sure I could muster it again. But the moment he does something to piss me off, he's outta here! You can keep Rin, but I'll personally kick his ass out if he tries to interfere with my life." He said in a serious tone.  
  
Sesshoumaru's chest rumbled almost inaudibly at the mention of separating him from his Rin, but quickly caught himself. kagome looked at him oddly after hearing it, but shook it off, "so Sesshoumaru, I know it wasn't much, but it sounds as if my mate has opened the family plot back to you, how kind." She said as she gave a sideways glare to inuyasha, but smiled when she saw him shrink back.  
  
Sesshoumaru thought for a moment, then nodded. "very well kagome-sama, I thank you for your undeserved hospitality. And thank you for thinking of Rin, you will be a good mother to your pups, of that I am sure." He said nonchalantly, but savored the horrified look from the both of them.  
  
"shall we go then, or do you wish to stand out here, and simply look at your knew domain?"  
  
kagome shook out of her daze and looked back to the demon lord, "huh? Oh yes! And if we're lucky, maybe we can turn this cold palace into a warm home." Kagome said happily, her eyes twinkling with the prospect.  
  
"feh! I doubt it, but whatever makes you happy kagome, we're all entitled to our own dreams." Inuyasha replied as he began to walk towards the large structure in the distance. Kagome rolled her eyes and ran up to her mate and linked an arm through his own. she turned back to Sesshoumaru who was still standing still in thought, "come on Sesshou! Lets go home!" she called to him with a smile on her face.  
  
Sesshoumaru nodded once more, and followed closely behind them.  
  
as they reached the gates of the castle, inuyasha and Sesshoumaru stood still and simply stared on. The gates slowly creaked open before them and the brothers entered. Kagome followed, but was deflected by some kind of demon barrier. "eek! What the? A barrier? I should have been able to walk right through that...maybe my powers are draining?" she thought out loud.  
  
Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru laughed to each other, and inuyasha came back to stand next to her, the barrier opening easily for him. "I'm sorry kags, I forgot that this was here. You see, it recognizes the blood of our family, but since you're my mate, I guess it doesn't recognize you since our bond is mainly in aura. But give me your hand, its nothing that cant be fixed." Inuyasha told her.  
  
Kagome held out her hand, and watched in confusion as inuyasha cut a gash in his palm with his claw, and did the same to her. "itai!" she hissed. Inuyasha held onto her bleeding hand, pressing his palm to hers for a moment. He pulled away, and walked over to the gates of the castle. He dragged his bloody hand across both sides of it, and watched as they seemingly absorbed it.  
  
He stepped back and smiled, "now, it will recognize you as not only my mate, but inu-youkai of noble heritage." He said happily. Kagome smiled as she healed the wound on her hand, and then made her way to inuyasha and pulled his hand infront of her. She brought it to her lips and kissed it tenderly, and then proceeded to lick away the blood slowly, and then used her miko powers to heal the wound completely.  
  
Inuyasha stared down at her, blushing and his mouth hanging slightly slack. "ka-kagome?'  
  
"There you go! All better, now lets hurry inside!" she yelled excitedly. Inuyasha furrowed his brow at her back as she skipped towards the house, "tease." He muttered under his breath, Sesshoumaru smirked upon hearing his frustrated sibling.  
  
Inuyasha followed his mate, arms tucked safely inside his haori sleeves, and slowly burning holes through the stone walls of the castle with his gaze. Sesshoumaru kept silent as he watched the two's behavior.  
  
Kagome was the first to reach the large cedar doors of the house, and waited, none to patiently at them. "come ON inuyasha! Hurry it up already, I wanna see inside!" she whined as she jumped up and down. "feh, watch it kagome, you're starting to sound like the runt shippou" inuyasha warned her.  
  
"shippou? Shippou-Chan?! My little fox is here?!" came a high pitched voice from inside. The large doors creaked open, and a small girl, about the age of 13 ran out from the palace. She stopped dead in her tracks to stare up at the visitors, "k-kagome sama? Inuyasha-sama?" the young girl asked in disbelief.  
  
Kagome smiled and leaned down to place a hand on the girls head. "yes, hello there Rin, ogenki desu ka, Rin-Chan?" kagome asked in a happy tone. Rin beamed with excitement, "arigato gozaimasu. Genki desu!" she beamed back.  
  
"Hehe, good to hear rin, I take it that Lord Sesshoumaru is taking good care of you?" the young demoness questioned.  
  
"hai! Lord Sesshoumaru takes very good care of Rin!" Rin replied happily as she shot her master a toothy grin over Kagome's shoulder, and Sesshoumaru gave her a kind one in return. "hmm, well while I'm here, I'm going to be schooling you Rin-Chan, it sounds to me that someone needs a lesson or two in their grammar skills." Kagome mused.  
  
"graa-marrr? What's that kagome-sama, Rin has never heard of this before." She asked in question. Kagome gave a small chuckle, and stood, taking the little girls hand in her own. "come on now, lets get inside." Kagome said, once again excited to see her new home.  
  
"Inside?" Rin gasped, "kagome-sama and inuyasha-sama are staying with Rin and my lord?!" she asked, and kagome only responded with another smile. "yayyy!" she shrieked and hopped in circles around kagome as she walked through the door way.  
  
"wait kagome!" inuyasha said as he suddenly jumped ahead to stand beside kagome, and without wasting a second, put an arm under her legs and swooped her into his arms. "I-inuyasha?!" she shrieked in surprise. "quiet kagome, I'm walking you over the thresh hold. I did some research on human marriages and found that the male carrys his bitch through the doorway of their new home." He said simply.  
  
Kagome looked up at him with a shocked look on her face, and started giggling wildly. Inuyasha arched a brow down at her, "what's so funny?"  
  
"you're just so cute when you're trying to be romantic." She giggled. Inuyasha snorted and dropped her to her feet when he reached the entry way of the home. Kagome was about to turn around and bite his head off for dropping her, but her voice stuck in her throat and her jaw hit the floor.  
  
Inuyasha stirred uncomfortably at the feeling of being in the home of his youth again, as all the familiar scents of the old place brought back many memories of the past.  
  
The floor was of white marble, and the walls were of the same. The boarders on the ceiling and floor were of molten gold. There were numerous tapestries lining the wall, giant dog demons and other lords portrayed in the priceless fabrics.  
  
As she moved further down the long entry way, she noticed ceiling appeared almost transparent, and the mid day sun seemed to shine through the solid stone walls. The home held a certain warmth, yet a tenseness at the same time, kagome presuming it to be the clashing of the demon auras that remained in the house.  
  
She came upon the ending of the hallway, and it opened up to reveal a large room. The floor sank into the floor and kagome noted a pair of wooden sandals, no doubt rins. She plopped off her own sandals and entered the room. The floor was made of curiously soft oak, and palm braches and exotic flowers hung in pots from the high ceilings.  
  
Kagome turned to face the others, with a smile adorning her face and tears welling in her eyes, "we're home inuyasha." She said quietly.  
  
Inuyasha smiled back at her as he made his way towards her, wrapping his arms around her waist. He lowered his head to the crook of her neck and whispered softly in her ear, "I'm glad you like it kagome, I can tell we're going to be very happy here."  
  
"I will show you to the master bedroom." Sesshoumaru broke in. kagome peered over Inuyasha's shoulder and looked happily at Sesshoumaru. "I'm following you, lead the way." She said. Sesshoumaru glided by the couple, closely followed by Rin.  
  
Sesshoumaru led the new lord and lady up a spiraling set of stairs, and upon the fourth floor. They reached the top of the stairs, and the hallway broke in two directions. Sesshoumaru led them to the right, towards the west wing. Kagome observed the numerous ink portraits of who could only be Inuyasha's ancestors.  
  
As they approached the end of the hallway, kagome spotted to large redwood doors at the very end. Candles were attached to the wall on either side of the doors, as well as too more portraits. Kagome gasped when she saw the faces of the paintings. On the right was the side profile of a demon lord. His long silver hair drawn up in a hair ponytail, held in place with wooden sticks. His eyes reminded her of sesshoumarus, strong. Yet at the same time they reminded her of Inuyasha's eyes, they held a certain compassion in them. The man had the marks of an inu demon on his face, and his garments clearly showed royalty.  
  
Then her eyes wandered to the portrait on the other side of the doors, this one a woman. Her hair was very long, and black as night. She wore many layers of noble kimonos, yet she did not have the markings of a inu Lady. But her eyes were what fixed Kagome's gaze. Her eyes were so kind, held such love, but at the same time held a sadness in them that she had only seen in one other person. She knew at once who the woman was, it was Inuyasha's mother.  
  
She turned to look at inuyasha, who was peering deeply into the picture as well, "inuyasha?" she whispered. Inuyasha didn't take his eyes from the woman's face, and simply nodded. He knew what she was going to ask, he could see the realization in her eyes as he watched her observe the murals.  
  
Sesshoumaru however, continued to look on indifferently. "this my Lady, is the Lord and Lady's chamber. That is why these depictions are adorned here, they are of the last ruling party. At one time, my mothers portrait hung on this very wall, but when she took her own life, she was moved to the halls of past rulers, where she still remains." He stated simply.  
  
Kagome listened nervously, only being able to imagine that this must be why the brothers grew to hate each other, 'Inuyasha's mom had replaces sesshoumarus...how sad' she thought.  
  
Rin tugged at the vacant sleeve of her masters haori, "Sesshoumaru-sama, Rin has never seen this room before, why have you never shown this Rin?" she asked in curiosity. Sesshoumaru didn't even bother to look down at the girl, "because rin...this room is to remained shut until the adorning of the Lord and Lady of the Western Lands. Kagome and inuyasha are to be those rulers, so it is time to break the seals." She said as he moved forward.  
  
He reached for inuyasha, and reached for Kagome. He clasped their hands together in his one hand, and moved them to the door. he pressed their closed fists, first against the picture of Inutaishou, their father, then to Inuyasha's mother. Kagome gasped as she watched the couples faces fade, and her own take its place.  
  
Kagome was portrayed in a long silk, noble kimono, with her long hair falling to one side. Her demon markings were clearly visible, and what looked to be her miko chi swirled around her person. Inuyasha was portrayed in much the same pose as his father. His back towards the viewer, and his head tilted over his shoulder, his eyes held the same softness but still the power in which was passed to him.  
  
Inuyasha and kagome stood in awe for a moment as they observed their own faces that stared back at them, "wha-what happened? Where'd the other paintings go?" kagome asked anxiously. "do not fret my lady, they have reappeared in the hall of past nobles. The lords chamber has recognized you as the new rulers, and thus, you are now granted entrance to the room." He stated.  
  
Kagome turned back to face inuyasha, and they stared at each other for a moment, and then back to the door. inuyasha slowly stepped forward, and placed a hand on the golden door handle, and pulled on it, expecting the door to be heavy. However, the door easily opened to him, and kagome quickly peeked her head into the door, to see what her mate was gawking at all of a sudden.  
  
'its gotta be really empressive to render HIM speechless, what's in there?' she asked herself. She clung onto inuyasha as her eyes focused in on the room. "its beautiful..." she said simply.  
  
In the middle of the large, VERY large room, was a VERY large bed. Above it hung a sheer silk canopy, and the mattress was covered in large pillows. The far wall was lined with closets, which themselves were lined in silver. There was a large balcony which took up almost the whole west wall, with long flowing curtains of a lilac color. The other wall was lined with floor to ceiling mirrors. Everything in the room was either lined in silver or plated in gold, and it seemed to sparkle in its majesty.  
  
Kagome and inuyasha began to walk into the room while Sesshoumaru and Rin waited outside. Kagome lifted herself ontop of the large bed, and from there she gazed around the rest of the room. Inuyasha watched her happily as she smiled in glee. 'I'm glad she's happy, maybe this will be worth it after all.'  
  
"I will leave you to yourselves, I only suggest that you be dressed and ready for dinner by nightfall. In the meantime, just enjoy yourselves, remember this is YOUR domain, so do not be afraid to wander if you desire. My and Rin shall retire for now, we will join you for the evening meal. Although I myself do not require human food, it is required that all royal family attend the formal meals together." Sesshoumaru explained.  
  
Kagome smiled at him and nodded in understanding. "what are we to wear Sesshoumaru? We don't have anything except the clothes on our backs." Kagome said.  
  
Sesshoumaru nodded to inuyasha and then walked away. Inuyasha nodded to his brothers back, and turned towards his mate. "what is it inuyasha?" she asked. "the clothing of our past lords and ladies are in the closets over there, you will be...you will be wearing my mothers clothes." He told her, and Kagome's eyes went wide. "your mothers clothes?"  
  
"yes, it is traditional that we wear the garments of the prior nobles, it shows our respect for their last standings." He said as he joined her on the bed.  
  
"oh, I see." She said.  
  
Inuyasha wrapped his arms around her as he laid to her side. He brought a hand to her face, and ran his fingers over her jawline, and then through her hair. "do you think you're ready for this my kagome?"  
  
"oh yeah, from birth I had a feeling that I would be destined to rule over some foreign land, 500 years in the past?" she said sarcastically. "really?" he asked as he raised an eyebrow.  
  
Kagome giggled, and pecked him on the lips, "of course not silly, but don't worry, I can adapt, as long as I have you by my side." She said as she smiled at him.  
  
Inuyasha smiled back at her, "I love you kagome." He said, "I love you more." She responded, and he leaned in to claim her mouth as his own. They relished in each others touch for who knows how long, but they enjoyed every moment of it. it was as if nothing else mattered, the only thing that existed was them, and they got lost in each other.  
  
But all too soon, a voice came from outside the door. "my lord, my lady, dinner is prepared, we are expecting you soon."  
  
Kagome pulled away from Inuyasha's feasting lips to respond, "we're on our way." She called, but inuyasha pulled her back down onto the bed before she could get up.  
  
"Inuyasha!" she cried, "we have to go, you don't want to be late to out first meal as lord and lady do you?" she asked. Inuyasha pouted, and rose with her. "fine, but you owe me." He said mischievously as he ran his tongue over her pulse, and then walked over to the closet and began digging through the clothes.  
  
Kagome pouted at his back, "hmph, tease."  
  
Suteki: okay, FINALLY the next chapter is complete! Sorry of there was any mistakes in the spelling or grammar, but I don't have time to proof read it if I want it up tomorrow, so I'll fix it later if there's any big probs. Hehe, sorry, I've been really busy what with the anime expo two weeks ago, and partying all this weekend, ugh, I'm SOOOOO tired! Okay, next chapter: Meeting the Counsel. 


	21. Getting to Know the Family

Suteki: alright, here's the deal. I KNOW that in the last chapter I said that this one would be Meeting the Counsel, but I ended up adding a whole bunch of more stuff, so, just think of this as a filler chapter! Enjoy ;)  
  
Chapter 20: Get to Know the Family  
  
Inuyasha and kagome found some appealing outfits and quickly dressed. Kagome stood infront of the large mirrors and smiled at her reflection. She didn't recognize the woman that stood before her, she looked too sophisticated. She was dressed in a black royal Furisode, the sleeves dropping to the floor. The kimono had beautiful designs of silver and pink sakura blossoms, the designs being of very fine detail. Kagome cringed at the thought of how much this thing much have cost.  
  
She had fixed her hair up into the traditional bun that she had learned in her kimono class back at school, if she remembered correctly, this was the one worn by royalty. She had it pinned up in some simple barrettes that she had in her bag, since she wasn't too sure if there was any hair supplies laying around in the castle. She twirled around infront of the mirror, and smiled at her handy work.  
  
Her eyes caught movement in the corner of the mirror, she turned around, and her mouth fell agape. Before her stood inuyasha, at least, he smelt like her inuyasha, but certainly did NOT look like her hanyou. He brushed off the arms of his ward, not noticing his mates gaze.  
  
He was adorned in a white silk haori, with silk black yukatas, much the same style as his red ones. On the front of his haori, was the simple yet elegant pattern of what appeared to be inu paw prints. His long silver hair, that usually flew free, was now pulled back in a simple ponytail at the back of his neck. "Keh, I hate wearing this stuff, it's just not me." He complained to himself.  
  
He smelt something strange coming from his mate, and he looked up. He was about to ask her what was wrong, but found that his voice had vanished as he took in the vision before him. His heart thudded in his chest as he was overcome with a strange sense of pride.  
  
Kagome had the same feeling bubbling in her heart, and she felt it difficult to hold back tears. "Inuyasha, you look more elegant than I've ever seen Sesshoumaru, you were meant to wear those robes." She told him softly as she approached him. 'Kagome?'  
  
"You look stunning kagome, absolutely beautiful." He said as he smiled at her beaming form.  
  
"Really inuyasha? It was the most simple one I could find!" she laughed as she gave him a little twirl.  
  
He laughed at her, and took her hand in his once she stopped spinning. "Well, shall we?" he asked as he bowed towards the door.  
  
She gave him another giggle, "of course my lord, I will be right behind you, two paces behind and too the left."  
  
He nodded, "no, no mate of mine is going to hide her beauty from me by lagging behind, you are to stand at my side at all times." He said, half sternly.  
  
She smiled back and squeezed his hand, and he squeezed back. He led her up to the giant wooden doors, and watched as they opened before them. They made their ways down the long corridors, both following their nose to the food. They walked down to the ground floor, and walked towards the other side of the house.  
  
"Jeez, just how big IS this place? We're gonna die of starvation before we even find the dining room." Inuyasha complained.  
  
"Foolish brother, its about time you arrived." Came the voice of the former lord of the western lands, and inuyasha looked to his right to see a small doorway, apparently leading to the dining room. "Good evening Sesshoumaru- sama, it is good to see you again." kagome smiled. Sesshoumaru bowed in respect to her, "good evening My Lady, we have awaited you. You too Lord Inuyasha." He said, his voice showing no emotion, but something strange glimmered in his eyes as his greeted inuyasha, but it disappeared before kagome could identify it. She didn't sense any hostility in his aura, so she decided not to worry.  
  
Inuyasha and kagome took their seats at the head of the table and Sesshoumaru took his seat at Inuyasha's left side, and kagome noticed a few other people sitting with them. There was Jaken, and Rin, who sat next to Sesshoumaru. To her right was a young demoness, probably the one who had called them down to dinner.  
  
"And what is your name child?" the girl looked at kagome with horror in her eyes, and she looked to Sesshoumaru for help. "What's wrong with her?" she asked Sesshoumaru. He looked up to kagome, "she is a servant girl, she is forbidden to speak to the lord or lady directly, unless ordered to do so. "  
  
Kagome frowned, and then looked back over to the girl that was fidgeting uncomfortably. "Come now child, I will not harm you. You are allowed to speak freely in my presence." Kagome assured her. Sesshoumaru frowned slightly, and inuyasha watched on interestedly. "It has been our ways for millenniums Lady Kagome, don't be surprised if they are hesitant to change." Sesshoumaru told her.  
  
"Fine then, it wont be casual conversation. Young servant, I command you to give me your name and age." She said with a fake sternness.  
  
The young girl continued to fidget, knowing that this Lady was certainly different from all the others. "M-My name is Yamaha Miehiko, I am 14 years old. My clan has been the servants of the inu kingdom for countless centuries."  
  
"You are a dog demon yourself are you not? It's in your scent. But your appearance differs from that of Lord Inuyasha and Lord Sesshoumaru."  
  
"She is of the red haired clan, a lower race who was bred to serve the higher clans such as the silver haired youkai, our clan." Inuyasha recalled.  
  
The little girl nodded, and kagome thought for a moment before coming back to the conversation that she was striving to keep alive with Miehiko. "My name is Higurashi Kagome...I mean...wait...inuyasha, what's your families last name?" kagome asked, just now realizing she didn't know what her mates last name was.  
  
Inuyasha thought for a moment, and realized he didn't know either and just shrugged to her. "Its Hara." Sesshoumaru stated simply.  
  
"Oh okay, my name is Hara Kagome!" kagome told the girl excitedly. The little girl smiled at her Lady, but said nothing.  
  
Before the two could continue, Sesshoumaru and inuyasha stood. "What is it inuyasha?" kagome asked. "Somebody's here, we have guests." He told her. "They are indeed guests, do not fret, the counsel has invited them for the coronation."  
  
"Coronation?" kagome asked. "Yes, the coronation of your coming to sovereignty. It takes place at the beginning of every Lord and Ladies appointment. It is an approval I guess you could call it." Sesshoumaru told them. "Okay, I see. When is it exactly?"  
  
"after dinner."  
  
"Its tonight?!" she all but screamed. Sesshoumaru raised a brow at her, "is there a problem your highness?"  
  
kagome looked up to inuyasha, who looked down at her with the same worried look in his eyes. "but, I don't know how to act around them, I mean, I know that they are going to know that I am a miko, and I'm too sure how my powers will react to being in such close range to too many demons at once."  
  
"its okay kagome, you can do this. You are a strong person, don't let all those snobby nobles get to you, just do what I do, ignore 'em." Inuyasha said as he sat back down by her side. Just then, they felt two presences enter the room, and Kagome's head shot up. At the threshold of the doorway, stood a familiar demoness in miko ward. "Katasuki?!" kagome asked in astonishment.  
  
"aye, nice to see you again, Lady kagome." The woman responded in her soft voice as she bowed to the Lord and Lady. "where is shippou?" kagome finally asked as she jumped from her seat, her eyes widely searching the room . Before Katasuki could answer, an orange blur dashed over the table, knocking over plates and glasses, "okasan!!" the fur ball cried as he landed in the woman's arms. "shippou, its you!" she cried as she held him close.  
  
"inuyasha look, its shippou!" she turned to face inuyasha who couldn't help smile in return as he watched his mate laughing in excitement. "I missed you so much kagome, has inuyasha been treating you right, cause you know I'll whip him into shape if he isn't" he said, the smile permanently singed into his face.  
  
Kagome laughed with the young cub, "oh thank you shippou, I don't know what I would do without you. Speaking of which, how is life in china? I notice that you've already changed your clothing." She said as she held the young boy away from her so she could look more closely at his new clothes. He wore a green, short sleeved top, orange pants, and a black Chinese style hat that sat awkwardly on top of his ears and ponytail. "yeah, mommy said that it would be easier for me to get used to china if I felt like I belonged there. the humans are so strange though kagome, woman walk the streets in clothing almost as revealing as that green and white kimono you used to wear."  
  
'how many times do I have to tell them that those clothes were for school?' she thought as the child continued to number off the strange things that the humans in china did, running out of fingers and moving to his fox toes.  
  
"and the demons! Jeez, talk about psychos! Although, maybe its just because i cant understand what they're yelling at me about, so I cant help but laugh at 'em...note to self kagome, never laugh at a youkai that's trying to ask you for directions to the nearest Bed and Dinner."  
  
He thought, and kagome laughed again, as inuyasha continued his amused smirk.  
  
Sesshoumaru turned his attention back to the demoness on the other side of the room. "Katasuki, what news do you have for us. Did any of the Lords or Ladies develop sudden illnesses again?" he asked in a bored tone.  
  
"actually Sire, no, all have confirmed their attendance and will arrive shortly. The knowledge of the new Lady being a full demon, miko, and ex- mortal, has stirred their interest it seems. I just pray to Kami that things do not get as unpleasant as when Lord Inuyasha's mother was appointed as Lady of the Western Lands." She recalled sadly.  
  
The room fell silent, the last comment catching Kagome's attention completely. "what do you mean, 'ugly'? do you think they will have a problem with me being Inuyasha's mate?" she asked, her brow furrowing at the thought of someone voicing such opinions.  
  
Katasuki sighed, "I can not say for sure what they will be judging you as Lady Kagome. You must especially beware of the Lady's, they are cunning and jealous of all newly mated females. You, being of exceptional beauty, will indeed be granted many a glare by the old hags. They all feel as if their mates have their eyes on you, though many WILL in reality. If I were you, I would steer clear of the Lord of the South, Samui, he enjoys trying to seduce the new Lady's, even to the point of rape if he can...i still do not see why the counsel has yet to do away with him. Another one to beware of is Hayai, he is very charming, not as dirty as Samui, but, he has the same thoughts as he."  
  
Kagome gulped and inuyasha growled, "don't worry kagome, neither of those men will lay a FINGER on you, I will see to that.'  
  
"as will I, inuyasha will no doubt be occupied with the counsel for moments at a time, which is when the Lords choose to attack, I will be watching kagome." Sesshoumaru assured her, but the butterflies still refused to leave her stomach.  
  
"oh come on kagome, you're as white as the belly of a fish. You will enjoy yourself, this is YOU'RE night, I wont let any dirty youkai touch you, so you don't need to worry about it." inuyasha said as he put an arm around her shoulder.  
  
Kagome looked up at him and nodded as she smiled at him. "okay then! When do they arrive?" kagome said as she let out the breath she had been holding in.  
  
"they will arrive shortly my Lady, the watchmen tell me that the Lord and Lady of the East are already near." Came the voice of Jaken as he entered the room, having left during the excitement to check the update. "Oy, Jaken. Take the children to Rin's chamber, they are to remain there until after the ceremony." Sesshoumaru ordered the imp. "yes sire. Come on children! Time to leave the adults to their affairs, you can go, do whatever it is you foolish children find pleasure in doing." He said as he shooed Shippou and Rin out of the dining room.  
  
"and Jaken, you are to remain with them as well, we can't have anything happening to them. You well know, although this is supposed to be a civilized event, these lower class nobles are still demons who have yet to control their nature." Sesshoumaru continued.  
  
Jaken stopped in mid stride, 'whhhaaat?!' he wailed to himself, although he tried to keep his voice stable on the outside, "yes master, I understand."  
  
Inuyasha, kagome, Sesshoumaru, Katasuki, and the servant girl Miehiko (yeah she's still there) listened as the laughter of the two kids, and shrieking of Jaken faded into the depths of the house.  
  
Miehiko stood and bowed to the nobles before her and made to leave the room, "where are you going Miehiko?" kagome asked before the girl could turn the corner. Without even making eye contact with her Mistress, "I am retreating to my quarters as well, it is not safe for me to stay here when so many other royal youkai are about, they tend to see little servant maidens as... their toys." She said and quickly made off to her room.  
  
"what's wrong with her?" kagome asked as the smell of salt came in the draft from the girl. Sesshoumaru's eyes kept on the path Miehiko had retreated in, seeming to be in thought, "a few years ago, during a counsel meeting here, her mother was raped and killed by one of the Lords' sons. She hasn't been the same around guests since then." He stated coolly.  
  
Kagome gasped in shock of hearing such tragic events that had happened to such a young girl.  
  
"well, you two had better go and get ready, the others should be arriving shortly. Sorry we did not have proper time to enjoy your meal, we will eat after the coronation." Katasuki told inuyasha and kagome, bowing. "oh, right." Kagome said, and turned to leave, inuyasha following.  
  
As kagome walked around the corner, she stopped, and leaned backwards to look back in the room. "tell me Katasuki, why is it that you never told us you were one of this clans advisors?" she asked, just now realizing that Shippou's mother had apparently had a hand in arranging, not only this coronation, but some in the past as well.  
  
Katasuki smirked at her before answering, "well my dear kagome, you failed to ask." Kagome glared at her, although the corners of her mouth were straining upwards into a smirk of her own. she laughed and shook her head as she continued her way to her room with inuyasha by her side.  
  
"are you nervous inuyasha?" she asked as the silence grew while they pondered the events of the evening.  
  
He looked down at her, eyes wide as if surprised by the question. He looked ahead and shook his head 'no', "of course not. I could care less what all these snobbish bastards have to say about us OR our ruler ship. Don't worry kagome, this thing is mainly just for show. Its so that the other Lords can size up the new ruler, and the woman to gage how big of a whore the new Lady must be, just cause she's younger. I for one, have never attended one, but Myouga told me about my fathers and my mothers and it must have been something to see."  
  
"heh, sounds like a school dance." She replied  
  
Kagome smiled, enjoying confiding in her mate, since they rarely had the chance to do so. She looked ahead and kept her small smile, maybe tonight wouldn't be so bad after all. 'as long as I have him at my side, there's nothing we cant get through. I'm actually looking forward to showing off infront of all these other stuck up woman who think they're better than everyone, just cause they're more confident than newbies. Keh, they have yet to meet THIS Higa- I mean, Hara.' She thought to herself as a mischievous smirk took over her features.  
  
Inuyasha eyed the strange look upon his mates features, "what's got you so excited all of a sudden, what are you planning my little demoness?" inuyasha asked her as a playful grin toyed at his lips.  
  
She looked back up at him, her eyes twinkling, her jaw slightly apart, and her lips tweaked to the side, showing off a fang. She removed the goofy grin, and gave him a 'I-know-something-you-don't' crooked smile. "oh nothing, just thinking of what I'm going to say to the other noble woman, perhaps I could gain their...attention." She said with a wink, and Inuyasha's face went pale for a moment, and then he looked back down the hall, the same look plastered on his face.  
  
Kagome laughed, and squeezed his hand. "come on inuyasha, race ya!" she said with another playful wink as she released his hand, and ran up the stairs best she could in the kimono. Inuyasha smiled and shook his head as he quickly gained on her, swooped her into his arms and ran with her until they arrived at their room. "behave yourself kagome, your one of the family now, you should act like royalty."  
  
Japanese;  
  
Furisode: kimono worn by royalty, the sleeves are exceptionally long, and they are of beautiful detail and tailoring.  
  
Yukatas: Japanese men's pants  
  
Haori: men's shirt  
  
Suteki: alrighty, end of chapter! Hehe, shippou returns! Weren't expecting that now were ya? ::winks at CM:: lol. alrighty, NEXT chapter, is: Chapter 21: Meeting the Counsel. 


	22. The Private After Party

Suteki: after three months I've finally returned! I'm really sorry for taking so long with this. I just wish I could have had a more glorious come back…like 2 updates in one day **sigh** sorry to disappoint everyone.

Chapter 22: The Private After Party

After the departure of Lords Samui, Hayai and their mates, the party began. Katasuki and kagome talked about china and Katasuki's past as an advisor.

"so Katasuki, why did you say that my father was Onigumo? Of all people, why that monster?" kagome asked the kitsune.

"well, I really wanted to say Naraku, but people would have known who that was. But you see, in reality, you owe your existence to him as much as you do your biological father." Katasuki explained.

Kagome only stared at her a moment, "okay, maybe I didn't hear you right, but I don't get what the heck you're talking about. How do I owe my existence to that bastard?"

Katasuki gave her a small laugh, " I understand that you would never have thought about it like that. but, the reason why you were born, was because Kikyou was killed by Naraku in this life. After you were reborn, you returned to this era to correct the wrong Naraku had done, in the process, meeting inuyasha and falling in love with him. Then, you found your powers as a miko because you were forced to fight against Naraku in battle. He also played a role in you becoming a youkai as you are now. You discovered your second destiny as the eye of fate because of that, thus, everything that has happened to you since birth, is somehow related to Naraku." She said.

Kagome tried to think about it for a moment, "I know there's logic in there somewhere, I just cant find it." she laughed.

"its alright, you don't have to accept it, but, you did ask, so I told you." Katasuki told her.

Kagome and Katasuki laughed about it for a while longer, until they were approached by another demon. "um, Lady kagome?"

Kagome turned to face the demons voice, "oh, Ayame, what's up?" she asked kindly.

"well, I just wanted to congratulate you I guess, on your achievement and all." She said, bowed, and walked away.

"man, what's wrong with her? She's been acting weird all night."

"don't worry kagome, Ayame's fine, she's just acting like a child as usual." Hakkaku said as he approached kagome with inuyasha and Ginta at his side. "hello sis." Ginta greeted as he waved.

"hey Ginta! Long time no see!" kagome said with a smile as she waved back. she looked back at Hakkaku, "what do you mean by that Hakkaku? What's wrong with Ayame?"

he looked at the corner Ayame had isolated herself in, and sighed. "well, you see sister kagome. Since the death of Kouga, she's been like this. I tried to assure her that it wasn't your fault, because she believed that you had used his love for you in a way that killed him. It took a while, but she got over her grudge, but she still blames Kouga for leaving her. She agreed to be my mate, but she still hasn't forgotten him." The young wolf demon explained.

Kagome huffed as she stared at Ayame from over her shoulder, "she's still stubborn and self centered, that's for sure. She's not the only one who misses Kouga, there's a lot of people he left behind. But he died knowing that he had at least TRIED to revenge his comrades, the last thing he told me, was that he wanted to help defeat Naraku, that's why he gave me his shards. His shards were the only thing keeping him alive, and he gave them to avenge the deaths of his brothers, and it worked.

I owe my life to Kouga, yes I miss him dearly, but he died for me, so I can only be grateful he gave his life. She needs to learn that, or else…well, or else it'll just bother me." She said with sternness.

Hakkaku kept silent, wondering what his friend would do to his mate. Not that he really cared if she slapped some sense into the woman, he would have loved to do it himself, but he was a little scared of the girl to tell the truth.

Kagome huffed and began to storm towards the pouting Ayame. A hand on her shoulder spun her around and she came face to face with inuyasha. "go easy on her kagome, I know how it is to mourn the death of someone you love, its not easy to except."

"well, why don't you go talk to her?" she asked him, and he raised a brow at him, "you're kidding, right?"

kagome laughed, "oh yeah, I forgot, you're too tough to do something nice like that." she teased as she nudged him with her elbow. "okay fine, I'll try to keep my cool, but I'm not guaranteeing anything."

"that's my girl." He said and kissed her on the forehead. Kagome turned, closed her eyes, counted to 10, and then made her way to the wolf demoness in the corner. "Ayame-sama?"

Ayame looked at her from the corner of her eye, "yeah kagome?" she asked in an uninterested tone. Kagome sighed while she tried to get her thoughts in order. "I know what's bothering you, and I wanted to talk to you about it, see if I can help you get some closure on the matter."

"I appreciate your generosity, but I didn't come here to confide with you of all people, I came her to pay my respects as is required of me, nothing more. Now if you'd excuse me, I have a mate to take home." Ayame said as she started to push past kagome.

Kagome put a hand to her shoulder before she could get passed, "you're just like him you know that? Running off whenever you feel fit, worrying about the here and now. Although, he was at least capable of telling me how he felt. Now you're going to be a good little girl, and listen to what I have to say, alright? I'm gonna be as nice as I can with you about this, any violence will be on your head if you fight it." she said sternly, trying her best to keep her smile.

Ayame shook the miko's hand off her shoulder, and backed up to lean against the wall again. "okay, but be quick about it, I don't have all day you know."

Kagome smiled and put her hands on her hips, "now that's more like it. but I want you to start Ayame, tell me the exact reason that keeps you from letting go of Kouga."

Ayame let out a small agitated growl before answering. "he left me behind, never telling me if he would come back and become my mate. I saw it in his eyes, he was doing this for someone else besides himself. I knew it was you, he never stopped loving you, even after all these years, you were always the closest thing to his heart. If he hadn't of loved you, then maybe he would have listened to me when I told him to stay out of the battle!" she yelled at kagome, hot tears shining it her green eyes.

"if I could have been the one he loved, the one he gave his heart to, then maybe…maybe he'd still be here." Ayame fell to her knees, and let the tears fall, her small frame shaking in sobs. Kagome watched on with a pitiful gaze, her heart did feel for the girl, but her reasons were still selfish.

Kagome rested herself on the ground next to the distressed princess, and put an arm over her shoulder. "Ayame, I can understand how you feel, to have someone you love never show you that love in return. But you know, he DID care for you, but maybe he just never showed you, or you were too busy stressing over the fact that you knew he loved another. What you must understand now, is that it is not right for you to blame him for his own death, he did what he chose to do. You should know that Kouga is not a puppy with a leash, he was a wolf with a free spirit, what he chooses to do, he WILL do, there's nothing you can do to change that.

I pain the loss of him as well, we all do Ayame, this is another thing you must recognize, you are not alone in your pain. Your mate Hakkaku for example, was close companions with Kouga for decades, he lost a very dear friend, you should seek comfort with him, not shun him for it."

Ayame only stared at the ground sniffling, her tears had stopped, but her mind was trying to decide whether to digest what kagome was telling her, or rebel and throw a fit. maybe Kagome's right…Kouga was indeed a wild spirit, perhaps I'm reading too much into his actions, maybe I AM being a little selfish…' ayame looked back up at kagome, who was watching her reaction with soft eyes.

Ayames temper calmed and she let out a heavy sigh. "I guess I have been dwelling on this a bit much…hakkakus really a great man, I shouldn't treat him so poorly just because I was too determined not to lose Kouga…thank you Lady Kagome…" she finished quietly, still staring at the ground.

Kagome giggled and gave her a small hug, "I'm glad you see that now ayame, perhaps now you can let go and move on."

Ayame scoffed with a smile, but the smile quickly faded when she felt eyes on her. Slowly she looked up, and saw just about the entire room staring at her and she blushed. When she came back to her senses she shrugged Kagome's arm off her again and jumped up, smoothing out her fur skirt and walking back towards Hakkaku with her nose in the air.

Inuyasha and kagome both raised a brow at her and shook their heads as the wolf princess grabbed ahold of their friends arm without missing a beat and dragging him towards the exit of the courtyard. "heh, I guess I'm leaving now you guys! It was great seeing you two again take care!!" Hakkaku yelled as his mate dragged him from the ceremony, waving till he disappeared around the corner.

Kagome, still laughing got up and came to stand next to inuyasha, linking her arm in his and leaning against him with a sigh. Inuyasha looked down at his mate and smiled, "you did good, I don't know how but it looked like to you actually reached her through that thick red head of hers."

Before kagome could respond, a familiar voice interrupted her, "indeed you did Lady Kagome, that was very gracious of you, you handled it quite well."

Both nobles of the western lands spun around, mouth gaping and eyes wide. "M-Miroku-sama?!" kagome gasped before lunging herself at the monk and capturing him in a strong embrace. "hah, its n-nice to see you too kagome-sama!" he cringed at the force of her hug.

Inuyasha laughed and walked up to the man and patted him on the back, the force of his hits jerking Miroku's body forward and knocking the wind out of him. "keh, long time no see monk, when did you get here?" he asked.

Miroku pried kagome off of him and straightened his robe, "its only been a few days inuyasha. But, we've been here the whole time, we saw everything." Kagome's eyes lit up and she bounced up and down, "WE?! Where's Sango-Chan?!!" she asked excitedly. Miroku glanced over his shoulder and Kagome's ecstatic eyes followed and she watched Sango forcing her way through the crowd, Kirara in her arms.

"Sango!!" she squealed and proceeded to tackle the other girl to the ground, Kirara just barely escaping the attack, jumped into Miroku's arms and mewed at inuyasha. Sango giggled with kagome and both girls wrapped their arms around each other, clearly close to tears.

Inuyasha kehed' and turned back to Miroku, who was nearly drooling. Inuyasha smacked him in the back of the head, almost causing him to drop the two-tail. "aaah that was uncalled for my friend," he said innocently, rubbing his head. The hanyou lord rolled his eyes, "keh, Hentai as usual."

After the girls finally got off the ground and joined the boys, the small group left the courtyard and their guests to find a less chaotic atmosphere. Inuyasha and kagome followed the scent of sulfur and sakura, until coming upon a small room with a hot spring in it. They wasted no time in getting in, inuyasha and kagome needing some serious relaxation after the stressful evening, and Miroku and Sango needing the same from their long journey.

"So, I'm curious, how was it that all three of you could have been present during the ceremony, yet neither me or kagome sensed you?" inuyasha finally asked.

Miroku lifted his staff, which lay close at hand outside of the hot tub, and he tapped it against the floor, the gold rings jingling. "you forget that I am a MONK, kagome isn't the only one that knows a few tricks." He said, winking at Sango with the last comment, and Sango promptly blushed.

After kagome and inuyasha were done studying the exterminators strange response, they shook it off both thinking they'd rather not know. Sango quickly changed the subject, and inquired kagome regarding their new living arrangements.

From that point, both the woman conversed about their homes and they're plans for adding their, womanly touch', that phrase alone making the men cringe and exchange worried glances.

"so, I saw Katasuki here does that mean that Shippou is present as well? I didn't see him." Miroku asked kagome, who was in mid-sentence about her closet. The smile and sparkle never left her eyes as she turned her gaze from Sango to Miroku, if anything her smile got wider at the mention of her formerly adopted kit. "oh yes! Shippou-Chan is here, he's in another part of the castle with Rin and jaken at the moment. They weren't aloud to stay for the ceremony, so Sesshoumaru sent them off. Ooh Sango you must see him before you guys leave, he's grown so much! And in such a short period of time too!"

Sango smiled and laughed at how excited kagome was getting, it made her heart glad to see her sister' so happy. She thought back to Kohaku, the bubbling laughter of kagome fading out as she let her mind focus on her memories of him. Usually when she did so, her heart would ache, and her throat would clench. But now, she found that the smile didn't fade, her heart lost none of its joy.

She knew that her troubled heart was now calmed, she had barely thought of her younger brother since the day of the last battle. She knew that Kohaku was happy before he died, and she saw him smile one last time. She would always be grateful for that. with that last thought, she returned her gaze to her laughing friends and her smile grew again.

Miroku, noticing his wife's strange behavior, wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in for a deep kiss. Causing Sango, kagome, and even inuyasha to blush. Sango turned her frantic eyes to her friends shocked and amused faces and promptly pushed her husband away from her, splashing water at him.

Miroku laughed, "hey! Well I'm sorry you got quiet so I thought id wake you up!" he said in defense, only to be rewarded by more hot water in his face.

Shortly after that, Miroku sadly informed them that they had to be returning to their village. Kagome pouted and insisted that they stay the night, but they said that they couldn't be gone for too long. Word had spread in the area that the slayers village was re-inhabited, but only by a single couple. So, there was a threat that robbers could ransack their home while they were gone, or that the demons could come to destroy the village once more, afraid that the population of youkai slayers would be replenished.

So, Sango and Miroku bid their farewell to Kagome, inuyasha, Katasuki, Rin, Sesshoumaru, shippou, and even Miehiko. Kagome of course, caught Sango in one last hug in the doorway, and refused to let her go for about fifteen minutes, and inuyasha had to pry her away from the Taijiya.

"Don't be strangers! Visit again soon!" kagome yelled as her two friends took off on the back of Kirara, and they waved in return. Kagome turned and smiled happily up at her mate. "well, it was nice to see them again." inuyasha said as he wrapped his arms around her and carried her back inside.

"it sure was, I wish they didn't have to live so far from us. I mean, there's plenty of room here in the castle, why cant they just stay with us?" she asked, looking up at inuyasha with begging eyes.

Inuyasha ran his hand through her hair as he thought for a moment. "first, I don't think Sesshoumaru could handle living with any more humans, and second, you know that its Sango's dream to rebuild her village and her people. How could she do that if she was living in a demon castle?"

Kagome hmphed' and pouted, but admitted defeat by sighing and leaning her head against his chest. "oh inuyasha, I'm so tired, lets go to bed huh?" she said warily, the exhaustion from the evening finally catching up to her, and with a vengeance. Inuyasha couldn't help the smirk that took over his features, and he mentally slapped himself, crediting the thought to too much time around the perverted monk. "alright kagome, I think we deserve it after the hell the stupid counsel put us through today."

Kagome laughed as she remembered the coronation, and inuyasha picked her up in his arms and started his way up to their room. Before he couldn't even reach their floor, kagome was fast asleep in his arms. He gazed down at her still face and smiled to himself, "my princess." He whispered and kissed her forehead, their bedroom doors opening infront of him.

He walked over to the bed, and gently laid her down on the soft pillows. The lord carefully undressed her, trying his best not to become aroused at the sight of her exposed body (MnS: go easy on him, he's just a male). Slowly he climbed into their bed and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, burrowing his face in her loose locks and inhaling her scent with a smile.

He kissed the mark that adorned her neck, and his smile grew. He felt whole now, like another large part of him had just been found. Although he wouldn't admit it verbally, he was overjoyed that he was finally a part of his youkai heritage, that he was finally accepted by the almighty counsel that had once banished him.

His thoughts drifted back to his mother, and how proud he knew this would have made her…and his father, how much he would have loved to have had him here to see this day, to have his approving smile upon him. But then, he remembered the words of kagome from earlier that evening, _"…and your father of you. They are here in spirit inuyasha, you cant deny the presence of their aura that lingers in this room, in these clothes, throughout this house."_

I'm home mother…father…' and with that last thought, the dream world came to claim him, and he drifted into a peaceful sleep, his arms still holding his mate close to his body, and his parents legacy to his heart.

Suteki: okay I'm sure that most of you probably want to kill me right about now! I'm sooo sorry for my absence. I got stuck on this chapter, rewrote it like 5 times, and I never liked it. I still think it could have been better, but I was in a hurry to get it done. I've been going through a painful lapse of writers block, amongst other things.

But I'm going to be making a desperate effort to getting back on track I promise! I just need a little encouragement is all. To Inusprincess, thank you for that review, all in all that one statement is what pushed me to get this chapter out there.

Don't worry, I still have more things planned for this story, first on my list is another lemon yaaayyyy! Haha. Well, please review, criticism is very much needed at this point, thank you.

Special thanks to all those that review on this chapter!!! **hugs all loyal reviewers**

Alright, till next update! (which hopefully wont be in another three months **cringes and ducks from angry readers** IM SORRY!!) ja ne ;)


	23. Heat and Bonds

Suteki: Alright! Now to confuse you all. To the readers at , this is the 24th chapter to you, but to the readers at , this is the 23rd. Thus, I am deeming it the 23 and ½. readers, the reason why you never read the 23rd chapter, is because it is a very explicit lemon. If you wish to view it, go to this link: . BUT, this chapter isn't just the edited version, but there's a lot more to it, so whether you read the lemon or not, you should read this chapter too…..alright, now that we are all confused, ON WITH THE CHAPTER! ;

Chapter 23 ½ - Heat and Bonds 

Kagome woke in a sweat, her body on fire. She didn't know why, but her entire night had been filled with lust-full dreams. Usually when she woke from something like that, she would feel embarrassed and dirty, but not this morning…she felt, naughty. A smirk broke at her mouth, as she ran her fingers through the wet, sticky mess that had formed between her legs and down her thighs. She slipped out of Inuyasha's arms and quietly made her way over to one of their closets.

"aha.." she whispered as she finally found what she was looking for. She pulled out the stereo, checked to make sure she still had batteries in it, and smiled when it turned on. She set it to the side and continued digging through the closet some more, and pulled out a few articles of clothing she had brought from her time. 'hmm, if they were surprised by my school uniform I could only imagine their reaction to these'. She folded them in her arms and tiptoed over to the bathroom and quickly changed and tied her hair up in a messy bun.

In the bedroom, inuyasha stirred and his arms smoothed out over the bed infront of him, searching for the now missing warmth. When he didn't find what he was looking for, he lazily opened his eyes and began to sit up. "k-kagome?" he asked with a yawn as he tried to look around the dimly lit room, his eyes still adjusting.

His eyes caught a silhouette standing in the washroom doorway, and his jaw dropped and he nearly choked on his tongue at what he saw. Kagome stood there, one hand on her hip and other supporting her against the wall, a sultry smirk playing at her lips. Her head tilted slightly down so she was watching him from under her lashes. As his eyes focused, he took in her apparel, which she must have just changed into since he had never seen it before. She wore a black lace gown, with black feathers fluttering around the wrists and bottom. under the gown he could make out a dark red teddy, the right strap falling down her shoulder.

"w-what the…" was all he could get out as she began to walk over towards him, turning on the stereo in the process. The soft music started in the room, and she came to stand infront of him by his side of the bed. She leaned over with her hands propped on her knees as to accent her cleavage, and kissed him lightly. "good morning my love," her warm breath swept across his cheek with her soft whisper. Inuyasha swallowed hard as he continued to stare in awe at her form, 'k-kagome must be in HEAT! T-that can only mean one thing,' he smirked to himself, 'I don't think we're going to be leaving this bed for a loooong while.'

Downstairs, Rin, Sesshoumaru, Shippou, and Katasuki were already awake and had finished the morning meal. As soon as the food was off their plates, the children had excused themselves and bolted outside to play in the gardens. Katasuki watched them through the doorway with a smile, it was a beautiful morning, the air still smelt of dew and night. Katasuki glanced to the former lord of the western lands and could have sworn she caught a smile pull at his lips for a moment, and a glimmer or serene calmness in his eyes.

"it's an exceptionally beautiful morning, don't you think so my Lord?" she offered, interested in his reaction. Without turning his head, he looked at her from the corners of his eyes and nodded, "I don't notice such foolish things, but since you mentioned it, I would have to agree that it is pleasantly calm."

Katasuki studied him for a moment, " what do you mean you don't notice such things? Every morning you sit in the same place and watch the sun rise, I know this for a fact, you must have appreciated it at some point." She was being careful to watch the tone of her voice, as to not offend him as most those who dared speak to him did. But from the years she had spent in his service, she had become more comfortable around him, learned when to speak, and when to keep quite. This morning she felt his aura was calmer than usual. 'could it be because the responsibility of Lord has been lifted from him?'

Sesshoumaru returned his gaze to the forest that lay thick just outside the castle walls. "I may have observed it, but nothing beyond that. Its true that I watch the world seemingly come to life every morning, but all this has proven to me, is that the same thing will happen every morning, whether anyone cares enough to watch it or not, there's nothing magical about it."

Katasuki kept quite as she thought about his words, and carefully chose her own. after a few minutes of silence between the two, she spoke again, this time completely off topic. "Sesshoumaru-sama…..why is it that you have yet to accept Lord Inuyasha as your brother?" she watched his jaw clench as she finished her sentence and mentally flinched, ' I hope I wasn't too direct…'.

"Inuyasha, is but my half brother. My father…he sacrificed his very life to protect inuyasha when he was born, and that human princess that he had taken as his mate. I thought my father was foolish, foolish and stubborn. I watched him leave that night, knowing he would never return to me. I was as good as a child in mind at that time, I blamed my father for leaving my mother, and for leaving me. But since he was no longer around to hate, I turned it to inuyasha…I see too much of my father in him."

Katasuki sat stunned, her face showing no effort to hide it whatsoever, 'I-I never expected that much of an answer from him." Sesshoumaru turned his eyes back to her and watched her emotions flash over her face, "why do you ask and why do you appear so surprised Lady Katasuki?" he asked, his voice showing but a small hint of annoyance.

She quickly turned her eyes away from him, finding her lap interesting at the moment. "I just never expected you to give me an answer such as that. But you said that you were as good as a child then, does that mean that your thinking has changed?"

Sesshoumaru remained silent for a moment too long in the kitsunes opinion. "after fighting along side him, and observing inuyasha, I got to know him. I've watched him, and many mornings, my mind ponders over him. I realized…inuyasha is the one that should despise our father. Chichi-san took a mortal mate, which was selfish of him. Inuyasha may have had a mother, but he watched his mother whither and die of old age as is the fate of every mortal, as he stayed young and healthy. He is well over 200 years old, but he only spent 40 of those with his mother. After she passed, I watched him weep over her grave for months to come. He was left in the world with not one soul that cared for him any longer. He is forever cursed as a hanyou."

Once again silence filled the room as both youkai's minds continued to contemplate Inuyasha's life, Katasuki had never considered that Inuyasha's age meant that he had watched his mothers body and soul whither.

"I no longer despise inuyasha…I pity him."

Rin ran over to Shippou who was watching a caterpillar eating at rose leaves and threw a halo of wild flowers around his neck and giggled. Shippou stood up and looked at his new necklace and laughed, "you really like flowers don't you?" he asked, turning around to face her. But Rin and already busied herself in the patch of multicolored flowers, "Hai! They're just so beautiful, they always cheer up Rin." Shippou laughed again and joined her and started picking a bouquet of his own.

"who are you picking those for Shippou-Chan?" Rin asked curiously in her high-pitched squeaky voice. "for Okasan, Kagome, and inuyasha! Kagome and inuyasha had a hard day at the coronation I heard, so if they cheer people up then I want to give them to kagome," he said with a bright smile. Rin smiled brighter as she continued picking more flowers.

"shippou-Chan, can I ask you something?" the little girl asked, and shippou nodded. "in the past, Rin has heard you call Kagome-Chan 'okasan', and 'haha-san', but is not Katasuki-sama your momma? Rins confused," she finished, turning to him with a perplexed look on her face. "well, my family and me were attacked by demons a few years ago, and I had found my father dead, and I couldn't find my mother, so I assumed that she had been killed as well. But then kagome found me, and from then on she had been like my mother, which is why I always called her 'okasan', I guess I just missed mine so much."

"but is not Shippou's mother alive, she is in the dining hall with Lord Sesshoumaru," Rin said questioningly and shippou laughed again. "yeah well, I didn't find out that she was alive until a couple of months ago!"

Rin smiled and jumped up in rejoice, "how wonderful! I'm sure you were very happy to see her, did you pick her flowers?!" Shippou watched her with amusement, "yes I was very happy, but I didn't know she was coming so I didn't have any flowers ready, sorry."

Rin turned and looked off into the sun rise, her smile slowly fading, not going unnoticed by the kit, "what's wrong Rin-Chan?" he asked, standing next to her. Rin turned back to look at him, tears shimmering in her eyes, "I wish my parents would come back…but Rins parents are dead…I saw them murdered by bandits…" her tears fell silently but she still tried to smile.

"nani?" Rin said quietly as she felt Shippou nudge her and she smiled happily when he handed her his bundle of flowers. "oooh arigato Shippou-Chan," she exclaimed as she took the offered gift and held them close to her chest and took a deep breath and giggled, "see, I told you they make people happy!" she spun around and kissed him on the cheek, causing the young kit to blush.

Katasuki turned back to Sesshoumaru, and smiled warmly but said nothing. He could feel her eyes on him but tried to ignore it, but soon he found even himself very uncomfortable and he glared at her. "what is it woman, why are you looking at me with such sympathy?" he asked in a indifferent tone. She smiled a little wider, "I do not mean to offend you my lord, its just, I've never heard you be so open. By any chance, could the calming aura of Lady Kagome be soothing your soul and allowing you to feel emotions such as these?"

He scoffed and looked away and thought for a moment, "perhaps you are correct, it is actually annoying, emotions are things only humans and fools dwell upon, they are not something I care to give any thought too." The kitsune laughed softly, "it is good for the soul, human or demon. Have you not noticed that Rin has had the same affect upon you Sire? There's something contagious about the smile of a carefree child, do you not agree?"

Sesshoumaru said nothing but gave a small nod. The woman smiled to herself for a while longer as she thought, and the smile faded slowly as another question ate away at her, but this one, would take much more courage to ask her master. 'well, I may not get another chance to confide in him, so now is as good a time as any,' she thought with a deep breath.

"why have you refused to take a mate, Sesshoumaru-sama." She asked warily.

She heard his heart skip a beat and him hold his breath, though he hid it from her well visibly, she knew she had hit something that could be fatal, but she knew Sesshoumaru was one to be blunt, and would not hide his anger if offended. "the answer is simple, I have yet to find a female that is compatible with this Sesshoumaru," he replied stoically, and for some reason she felt hurt by his words.

'why do I feel slighted by that response?' she questioned herself.

"I might ask you the same question Katasuki, do you have any plans of re-mating, after the death of Tenraku, your former mate? You became an imposter miko, but have you taken the same oaths of chastity as the shrine maidens must?" Sesshoumaru asked her, seeing the thoughtful look on her face.

She was lightly jumped at hearing his voice, being pulled from her thoughts. "oh well, no, I did not take the vows of a priestess. The miko I trained with knew what I was, and that I could not truly be of their kind, no matter how much spiritual power I may hold. But…the reasons I have yet to seek a mate are more sentimental than any. The bond experienced between mates, is like none other. Most youkai woman never re-mate, mourning their loss till the day they die. But, Tenraku and I made a promise, that if anything were to happen to either one of us, we would move on for the sake of our son."

Sesshoumaru watched her closely, smelling the slight scent of salt that must be tears forming in her eyes. "but have you moved on Lady Katasuki?" he asked, hiding any sign of emotion in his voice, but she could see the sympathy in his usually cold eyes.

The woman shook her head slowly with a sad smile, "I have tried but it is hard. I…I left shippou and fled to china, hoping that my training would help to free me of my disproportioned emotions, so that I may be able to move ahead. I didn't want shippou to see me doing so, watching me to try to forget his father so soon after his death. I knew he wouldn't understand, which is why I left him behind. I made sure that kagome and inuyasha were directed towards him, I did not leave until then.

But…no matter how long I trained and meditated, the memory of him still lingered and held me back. the head priestess meditated with me…and I realized my course of action had been wrong, I needed my son. So I returned, and since I saw him again my mind has been at ease. I will never forget Tenraku, but I feel I am finally moving forward," she said with a small laugh and a shake of her head.

Sesshoumaru continued to watch her for a moment trying to understand what she had said about the bond of mates, "I can only imagine the strength of the bond you speak of, since I have never experienced such a thing. I've never witnessed it either, my father abandoned my mother after she had committed adultery with one of his soldiers, and I refused I accept my fathers relationship with Izayoi. But, you never answered my question, do you plan on taking another mate?" he asked again.

Katasuki looked up at him questioningly, wondering why he was so interested in getting the answer to that. "I hope too, I cant say when but I do hope too. I don't think I have the strength to search for one, but if one does come around, someone that will love me as well as shippou, then I will mate again, but not a day sooner," she answered him quietly and Sesshoumaru simply nodded his head in return.

Rin and shippou came prancing into the room excitedly just then, their laughter filling the formerly quiet room and gaining the adults attention.

Rin looked around the room and with a pout she turned to Sesshoumaru, "Sesshoumaru-sama, where are Kagome-Chan and inuyasha-sama? Rin wants to play with them." Sesshoumaru and Katasuki looked down on her after glancing at each other, not really sure what to say. The little girl 'hmphed' and began to stomp towards the stairs while shippou stood next to his mother and watched her, "Rin is going to go wake them up, the sun is already risen, its time for them to get up too!"

Sesshoumaru and Katasuki stuttered and reached out to grab her, but everyone came to a halt and held their breath as a soul shattering scream echoed throughout the castle, though the words inaudible. Rin blinked and slowly turned around, "w-was that kagome-Chan? I-it sounds like she's hurt! Sesshoumaru-sama you must go help them!" she wailed as she ran back to him and clutched his kimono.

The youkai prince just stared upwards with a disgusted look on his face, and looked over to Katasuki who was blushing madly. for such a small woman, she sure does have large lungs… he hesitantly said to the kitsune telepathically, and she looked over at him surprised, but nodded.

Kagome collapsed to the bed, and inuyasha fell to her side, both panting into the bed. Inuyasha pulled out of her and caught his breath, "y-you are amazing my love," he said in a soft whisper as he began kissing against her mark. She shivered and leaned back to kiss his cheek, "but you're better. I love you inuyasha." She replied, nuzzling against him.

"mm, and I love you more, my mate."

"mmm, no, I love YOU more koibito." She said happily. Inuyasha growled behind her, "you dare defy your mate?" he asked, nipping at her back. Kagome smiled naughtily again, "well, I guess you'll just have to prove to me, that you love me more. You cant just go around claiming something like that without giving some proof Inuyasha." Inuyasha turned her over to face him, "is that so?" he asked, smirking now himself, and kagome nodded. "cause I can spend all day and all night proving just how much I love you."

Kagome felt her heart pick up pace at his words, "bring it on, I can take it." she said defiantly. Inuyasha kissed and nipped and her lips, "don't worry wench, I'm going to make sure that by the end of the day, you know who you belong too." he whispered in her ear before coming back to kiss her passionately.

'after today, there is no doubt kagome will be with pup.' The hanyou thought happily to himself and continued kissing his eager mate. 'kagome will soon bear our pups, MY pups…'

………..…Rin never did get to play with Kagome and Inuyasha that day…

Suteki: The end!!….of the chapter that is ;) I've decided that I'm going to give you 2 or 3 more chapters of this story, before I call it the end of part one. So things are going to be going a little fast, but don't worry, that doesn't mean it'll be written in a rush, that always ruins it. But, do not worry, I'll be getting started on part 2 after only a short break, I'm going to get my bearings so I can get a nice flow of chapters out for it Hope you enjoyed it and thanks again to all my loyal reviewers!! Oh, CM, I'm sorry I never emailed you, but I will soon!! Promise!!

Specail thanks to my boyfriend Inutaishou (Joe) for helping me with this! You all should be grateful to him as well, this chapter, along with the last would never have gotten done without his support. LOVE YOU KOI-Chan!!!!


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